Chapter 627 General, you don’t want to raise the tax to eight citizens and one citizen, right?
The Ming Dynasty enjoyed the benefits of opening up the sea, but the various disadvantages of opening up the sea began to gradually surface.
Because we can get rid of the supply of raw materials, centrifugal force is increasing, money worship has appeared in various names, ideology and culture have been impacted, and the emperor's unpredictable imperial power is being constantly challenged. All of this is the beginning of The price of the sea.
No matter how high the price is, Zhu Yijun will not give up the strategy of opening up the sea.
“After Columbus, there were countless Columbuses in the West, after Vasco da Gama, there were countless Vasco da Gama, after Magellan, there were countless Magellan, and after Zheng He, there was no more Zheng He.” Zhu Yijun looked at the two important household ministers of the dynasty and said sincerely: "The Ming Dynasty has lost an ocean and cannot lose another ocean."
Zhu Yijun saw two English envoys, John Harrison, with his own eyes , Francis Drake.
Both men were pirates and adventurers. John completed the first voyage to North America, and Drake completed England's first voyage around the world. Drake just knew After Magellan's successful voyage around the world, Portugal and Spain successively became world empires before they chose to set out.
The Queen of England has always refused to give up her privateering license, just to compete with Spain for the dominance of global navigation.
More than two hundred years ago, Ming Dynasty was the first to explore the ocean, but now it lags behind others.
“If there is centrifugal force, we must find ways to create centripetal force, instead of chopping off the feet if the feet hurt, or the hands if the hands hurt. If the head hurts, shouldn’t the head be beheaded? Even in wealthy coastal areas, raw materials can be given up. supply, then we should also find ways to make the poor areas in the northwest inland rich, this is the solution to the problem." Zhu Yijun looked at Wang Guangguang and once again determined that the road to opening up the sea should be consistent.
To shrink back when encountering the slightest resistance, and gradually everything will be abandoned halfway. This is not perseverance, but it is also cowardice.
“Your Majesty is Holy Ming.” Wang Guoguang bowed his head and said.
"Your Majesty, there is a huge problem in the supply of overseas raw materials, that is, instability, and the fluctuations are too huge." Zhang Xueyan put forward his own point of view. His Majesty's concerns are right, but Zhang Xueyan has different opinions. Opinion.
“Your Majesty, it is an unrealistic daydream for wealthy coastal areas to be separated from the supply of raw materials from the mainland. It is not a fantasy based on reality. The production diagram tells us that the most important thing in production is stability. If If the quality and quantity of incoming materials fluctuate too much, how to ensure the stability of production? "
The production diagram is one of the results of Ming Dynasty's great thinking. Production is not equal to business, and business is profit-seeking. Profit-oriented, while production is driven by producing more goods and stability.
Wang Jiaping, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, and Wang Tingzhan, the governor of Sichuan, fought tooth and nail. They even sent guest soldiers there just to steal silkworm seeds. They even quarreled in front of the emperor. The public said it was fair, but the mother-in-law said Po Youli is for the silkworm seeds from Sichuan and Sichuan, because the silkworm seeds affect the quality of raw silk and the quality of the final product.
Similarly, Guangzhou Prefecture was one of the pioneers in opening up the sea in the Ming Dynasty, second only to Songjiang Prefecture.
Why doesn't Wang Jiaping resort to overseas resorts and rely on overseas raw material imports, but insists on fighting Zhang Juzheng's direct disciples with real swords and guns?
Because there really aren’t any overseas.
Some raw materials can be supplied overseas without leaving Ming Dynasty, and some are even possible.
"I agree with your statement, you are right." Zhu Yijun very much agrees with Zhang Xueyan's idea. Relying on cheap shipping and relying on overseas imports for a large amount of raw materials, he can get rid of the poor brothers in the mainland, just like the humble Confucians. Everyone cultivates virtue and the world is unified, which is an illusion of the same nature.
Silk is rich in profits, and this has been true throughout the ages. Is it because others don’t like the huge profits in silk? It can't be done.
Until later generations, China's raw silk production still accounted for more than 90% of the world's production, because sericulture is a technical job.
Silkworm babies are very delicate. They will stop spinning silk when they are frightened. Moreover, silkworm babies need temperature and humidity. If there is a slight problem, you will really lose your harvest. The county magistrate is in the county The local emperor here did not dare to beat gongs or drums during the season when silkworms were spinning silk.
"Raw materials are still self-sufficient and stable." Wang Guangguang's eyes lit up and he said to Zhang Xueyan: "The Ming Dynasty communicated with the Mughal Kingdom and obtained countless cotton, but the cotton from the Mughal Kingdom Cotton only accounts for about 5%, but relies more on cotton from Shandong. Shandong cotton accounts for 45% of Songjiang cotton. This is ironclad proof. "
The rice from Champa comes from Mongolia. The cotton of the Wu'er Kingdom is a bulk commodity, but for the behemoth of the Ming Dynasty, it is a drop in the bucket, a drop in the bucket, and cannot even affect the price of cotton in Songjiang Prefecture, because the dominant position is still the cotton of the mainland of the Ming Dynasty, Shandong, Henan, etc. cotton from the field.
This is also the reason why Emperor Akbar of the Mughal Kingdom did not dare to fight against the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty could not use the cotton of the Mughal Kingdom, but if the Mughal Kingdom wanted to be a second-rate dealer, it must Ming Dynasty cotton cloth.
Akbar thought about weaving by himself, but later found that it was too difficult. Hard-working labor force is a scarce resource no matter what era or where it is, but the Ming Dynasty had too many. Just ordinary.
This is often the case. No matter how complete the logic is, the public opinion advocated often ignores the facts. Once you combine it with reality, you will find that it is nothing more than a fallacy.
Leave behind the poor brothers in the mainland and rely entirely on overseas raw material imports. In this way, everyone in the coastal areas can become rich. This is a typical actuarial style, but if the coastal areas lose their depth, it can really be done. To maintain your own prosperity?
The Japanese kingdom raged for more than 20 years during the Jiajing period, proving that there was no depth, and wealth was just a huge piece of fat, just a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
How can a childish man spend his time in the bustling city without being known to others?
Look at what Ming Dynasty is doing to Japan now. Isn’t it just bullying Japan without depth?
Even if we do not consider it from the perspective of wealth security, the instability of overseas materials is the natural enemy of production.
Wang Guoguang and Zhang Xueyan communicated with the emperor for a long time. The most direct way to make poor places rich is to build official factories and engineering corps camps. Only by large-scale production and rich materials can we obtain more silver. This silver Only by reinvesting can you become rich.
The premise of all this is: building roads.
Wherever Chidao reaches, there are official factories and engineering regiment camps blooming everywhere.
"It's good to build the road. There is no money in the national funds, right? I have it! In this way, I lend it to Antonio Tessie with an annual interest of 3.3%. If I lend it to the Ming Dynasty, there will be no interest. Just return it regularly. Now, I can give 20 million from the national funds to build roads!" With a wave of his hand, Zhu Yijun decided to withdraw 20 million from the internal funds to build roads for the court!
“It’s such a waste to have so much money piled up inside the house!”
Zhu Yijun was a miser, and he couldn’t bear to see the silver piled up like this and getting moldy.
"Your Majesty, please retire!" When Wang Guoguang heard that the emperor wanted to borrow money, he immediately rubbed oil on his feet and ran away with Zhang Xueyan! As a loyal supporter of conservatism, Wang Guoguang is firmly opposed to eating Yin's grain. He doesn't have to pay back any money he owes anyone. He can owe military pay. He can only give official salary for three months, but the money owed to His Majesty is really Have to pay it back.
If I really can’t afford to pay back the money I owe His Majesty, His Majesty’s solution is to dissolve the court and re-establish it. One day, he, Wang Guangguang, will be nailed to the pillar of shame and ridiculed by others. For thousands of years, incompetence is the greatest ridicule to a person.
"Hey, why are you leaving? I don't even want interest! Have you ever seen such a conscientious creditor!" Zhu Yijun stretched out a hand, but he only caught the slightly hot summer wind.
Zhang Xueyan left faster than Wang Guoguang. Wang Guoguang was the elder of the pavilion. He went to Xitucheng for retirement. He, Zhang Xueyan, was the first person in charge of the household department.
"I didn't lend it out." Zhu Yijun put down his hand helplessly. Antonio borrowed the two million taels as if he hadn't borrowed it. The silver in the Ming Dynasty's internal funds was printed on the scale of silver coins in the war. You cannot invest before reaching 6.5 million.
Feng Bao and Zhang Hong just laughed. Too much silver is a happy trouble.
In June of the fifth year of Longqing, the late emperor who liked Shenyin held a court meeting and hoped to withdraw 300,000 taels of silver from the national funds. Because of the gold and silver in the fifth year of Longqing, the national funds still owed the internal funds. Five hundred thousand taels of silver were not given, and the late emperor asked for an account of the state's money, but in the end the state's money was scrapped here and there, and only 126,000 taels of silver were given.
Because there is no national money.
It is better to have money but not spend it than to beg for food without money. It is better to have money but not spend it. If you don’t have rice in your hand, even if you call a chicken, the chicken will not come.
The Ming Emperor was worried about too much silver, and at this time Oda Nobunaga, who was in Honnoji Temple in Kyoto, Japan, was worried about the lack of silver.
The Ming Dynasty demanded 15 million in war compensation, and it had to pay three million silver in the first year, that is, the three million silver should be paid before June of the thirteenth year of Wanli, otherwise the Ming Navy would land in Osaka Bay again.
"General, there is a Tang Dynasty businessman outside the door asking for an audience." Kuroda Takaka said solemnly: "He is not from the Nagasaki Governor's Palace."
Not from the Nagasaki Governor's Palace, It means that he is not on the same side as the Ming Dynasty. He is here to discuss business with Oda Nobunaga.
"What do these black-hearted businessmen want? Do we in Japan have anything worthy of their plans?" Oda Nobunaga said helplessly: "It's just to make my people go to the Motosu Islands to suffer. . ”
Oda Nobunaga has never had contact with these businessmen from the Yuanxu Islands, because he knew that these businessmen were digging for the foundation of the Japanese country.
"It would be great if Takenaka Shigeharu was here." Oda Nobunaga helplessly sighed heavily at the blood-stained sunset on the horizon.
Takenaka Shigeharu, Takenaka Hanbei, was Oda Nobunaga's internal affairs adviser. In the seventh year of Wanli, he died on the way to conquer the Maori family.
The Kuroda Takataka next to Oda Nobunaga is Kuroda Kanbei and an important adviser to Oda Nobunaga, but Kuroda Takataka is better at military affairs.
"But we are short of silver, and the Ming court is coming fiercely." Kuroda Takataka also said with a somewhat tragic tone: "What else can we do? Even if the general shows mercy to these farmers, he has to pay aid Military expenses are a top priority. "
"Then let's meet." Oda Nobunaga's originally straight back now looked a bit rickety, and he finally agreed to meet these greedy businessmen.
Oda Nobunaga was originally full of confidence, because the decree he implemented was two citizens, one citizen, and heavy taxation. However, compared with other Warring States Period Ming dynasties, which had excessive demands for eight citizens and one citizen, or even nine citizens and one citizen, there is no doubt that , Oda Nobunaga faced everyone in Japan.
However, the situation took a turn for the worse.
The war compensation of up to 15 million taels of silver is a sharp sword hanging above his head. Even if Nobunaga no longer wants to see these merchants, he must see them.
The person who came was a middle-aged man in his forties. He was wearing a Confucian robe, but he did not have much elegance and easy-going temperament. Vitriolic and greedy.
"The general's door is really difficult to get in. After spending a lot of money, I finally knocked on the general's door. So, general, let's talk business." The visitor was not polite, let alone To be polite, he just sat down opposite Oda Nobunaga so carelessly. Instead of sitting on his knees, he found a low stool and leaned on it. "You are very rude." Oda Nobunaga felt insulted. Ever since he raised his sword from Owari Kingdom to Luo, he had never dared to be so arrogant in front of him.
"Is it rude? Do you need to be polite when treating Japanese people? Is it useful?" The businessman said nonchalantly: "My name is Liu Changshan, you can just call me Shopkeeper Liu."
Liu Changshan is from Huarong, Huguang, and his family migrated to the Yuanxu Islands. Unlike Sun Keyi, who pursued the imperial title of pioneering lord, Liu Changshan's family did not pursue the title from the emperor at all. It was the imperial court in the sixth year of Wanli that ordered the migration of wealthy households. At that time, in order to avoid the imperial decree, he left the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty.
Even the opponents of the Wanli Restoration, their attitude towards the Japanese was definitely not friendly, or even extremely bad. In other words, it is difficult for Confucian scholars who grew up under the education of the Hua-Yi debate to be polite to the Fan-Yi .
As long as the other party is expelled, everything becomes natural.
"Let's talk business. How about a Japanese slave worth four taels of silver? If a general is good at fighting, he will probably get a lot of prisoners. If he kills these prisoners, he will be criticized, and it is unlucky to kill a prisoner. If these prisoners are released, it will be like letting the tiger return to the mountains, but relocating them will require a lot of money or land. "Liu Changshan said with a smile: "What do you think of my proposal?"
"Sell the prisoners to me. It is not a problem to get goods worth four taels of silver and then resell them for three to five taels of silver. In this way, three million taels of silver are just the cost of supporting the army, which is very easy."
"General. , You don’t want to raise the tax to eight citizens per citizen.”
Liu Changshan gave a plan. One Japanese slave could be exchanged for four taels of silver goods, and there would still be a profit when resold. In this way, there would be no need to increase the tax rate. Being able to pay war reparations without losing the basis of one's rule sounds extremely wonderful.
“Is there a way to have both worlds in the world? What you said seems to be the best of both worlds, but the biggest question is, what are prisoners? In the past, killing good people and taking advantage of others was forbidden, but now you can get prisoners by robbing farmers. , After all, it is easier to rob farmers than to defeat the enemy," Oda Nobunaga said with a cold expression.
What a bullshit two-pronged approach. As long as prisoners are as valuable as human heads, it will be extremely common to kill good people and take credit for plundering farmers.
"Look, look, I have found the steps and reasons for you. You have to tell the truth. I am just a businessman. I am not the shogun of the Japanese country. I don't care about the Japanese slaves. Come? You give me the Japanese slaves, and I give you the goods. It's just a simple barter." Liu Changshan spread his hands, and he just wanted to find a reasonable excuse for Oda Nobunaga.
As a businessman, does he still have to figure out where these Japanese slaves come from? Anyway, when we arrived at the plantation on the Yuanxu Islands, when we whipped up the whip, they were all livestock.
If a person is castrated, he will have less worldly desires and will work steadily until death.
“Besides population, don’t you have anything else you want?” Oda Nobunaga was silent for a long time. Admittedly, Liu Changshan also knew that he was farting, and he was just looking for a way out for Oda Nobunaga. Oda Nobunaga insisted on telling the truth himself, but instead slapped himself.
If there was really a way, Oda Nobunaga would not meet Liu Changshan.
"Besides the Japanese slaves, is there anything else worthy of our plot in the Japanese country?" Liu Changshan asked in return.
Liu Changshan said with a smile: "By the way, a large sulfur mine has opened in Luzon, right in Mindanao. It is a volcano, only eighty miles away from Davao City in Mindanao. The country's surname I have sent Deng Zilong to lead the tooth soldiers and Chen Chengyi to bring the miners. You know, sometimes miners are an excellent source of soldiers."
"In addition to silver, we can also use sulfur, a specialty product of Japan. Buy from Luzon ”
The mine in Davao is an active volcano, which has resulted in very rich mineral resources nearby. Someone picked up a huge gold nugget. This triggered people's enthusiasm for going to the volcano. In the end, Ming Dynasty found silver mines and sulfur ore seedlings in Davao, and found the dragon.
Preparations for development are all in place, and the minerals will really attract the Ming army.
"It's really unfortunate news." Liu Changshan said with a bit of schadenfreude. Liu Changshan's expression was joking, his tone was frivolous, and his words were even more irritating. But even so, Oda Nobunaga could not do anything to Liu Changshan. Because goods are indeed needed in exchange for silver.
"I know, I know, the general is a good-looking person. How can he let the general do such evil things? There are so many generals under the general, I just go to them to do it. In this way , the reputation of the general is fulfilled, and the general also gets the goods." Liu Changshan found another step for Oda Nobunaga.
No matter how hard it is to be a poor coolie, the infamy will be borne by the retainers, and the benefits will be collected by Oda Nobunaga.
"How can there be such a good thing in the world? No need." Oda Nobunaga still refused to go down the steps. He would rather be scolded than leave this matter to his retainers. Since then, After the last assassination incident, Oda Nobunaga knew clearly that as long as the restraints were relaxed a little, even the guard of Kuroda Takataka in front of him would betray him.
In the Japanese country, there is a very common political atmosphere in which the lower level suppresses the upper level and the upper level is emptied out. The general who conquered the barbarians emptied out the emperor, the three leaders emptied out the generals, and the family governor emptied himself out the leader. If Oda Nobunaga wanted to live, he could only do everything by himself.
"Why is the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty so lucky? Even if there is Zhang Juzheng, there is also Qi Jiguang! If you get one of them, you can win the world, and the emperor will get two more!" Oda Nobunaga's words are visible to the naked eye. resentment.
The Ming Dynasty Navy landed at Osaka Bay. The military discipline was strict and the military appearance was neat. They did not even trample the rice seedlings in the fields! No matter how scary the rumors are, nothing is as despairing as seeing it with your own eyes.
The Ming Dynasty’s naval training method is Qi Jiguang’s two military training books. The Ming Dynasty’s seals are everywhere. Oda Nobunaga has also read them. He also wants the Ming Dynasty’s capital camp, not to mention one hundred thousand. In the Jingying camp, he, Oda Nobunaga, had 10,000 samurai warriors like him who were full of samurai spirit. They swept all the Warring States daimyo in Japan. It was just like playing, and they didn’t even need firearms like the Ming Dynasty Jingying camp.
People are always strong, not weapons.
"Yes, yes! Why is the emperor always so lucky? Having Zhang Juzheng is enough to make people grit their teeth, and having Qi Jiguang is simply unreasonable!" Liu Changshan was very excited when he said this!
Why did Haoyou, who was determined to relocate to his homeland, run away? Why not rebel? The basic consensus is that they can't defeat them, but the Beijing camp is here, and rebelling is tantamount to seeking death. But anyone who has seen the Spring and Autumn Parade with their own eyes can't say such outrageous words as rebelling.
Whether Zhang Juzheng is Prime Minister or Prime Minister, it doesn't matter whether he is prime minister or regent. What is important is that Zhang Juzheng did not usurp the throne and returned power.
One Zhang Juzheng can be said to be special, and there is also Qi Jiguang, the hereditary Duke of Fengguo. The words "reshaping the soul of the army" are no joke.
If you can't win an argument or fight, you can only curse a few words.
"Why is the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty so young, a child in his twenties, so arrogant and powerful? He can do whatever he wants! He does whatever he wants! He kills people when he says they will, and he kills his family when he says he wants. Damn it! Isn’t it just a trick of using the power of Zhang Juzheng and Qi Jiguang! Without Zhang Juzheng and Qi Jiguang, who is the Ming Emperor? He dares to criticize the people like this!" Liu Changshan was extremely angry.
But this kind of anger is more like incompetent rage, because the bereaved dogs who escaped from the Ming Dynasty are the powerful ones like them.
"Now there is another Li Rusong. News came from the capital in Oda City that it is Li Rusong who is highly valued by the emperor and has a brilliant record. Half of the titles of Marquis Ningyuan were obtained by Li Rusong. ”
“There is also a Xiong Tingbi who is both civil and military in the Quanchu Guild Hall. He is a fellow student with the emperor. I heard that the emperor treats Xiong Tingbi very well. Every time he goes to the Quanchu Guild Hall, he brings something with him, and he is worthy of his words. Xiong Da has already gone to Suiyuan. As soon as he arrived in Suiyuan, he led the Suiyuan army to suppress the bandits. At the age of sixteen, he set three arrows at Yinshan." Kuroda Takagao reminded Oda Nobunaga that there was still a young man in the Ming Dynasty. Li Rusong, and Xiong Tingbi from the Shao Shao Zhuang sect.
"Three arrows set Yinshan?!" Liu Changshan said dullly: "Who? Who is Xiong Tingbi?"
Takagao Kuroda told the whole story.
Xiong Tingbi’s three arrows to reach Mount Yin has become a widely circulated story in Hetao.
There is a group of horse bandits with more than 8,000 people entrenched in Yinshan. This group of horse bandits is extremely fierce. Even the military garrison who migrated from Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia to Hetao has never been able to wipe out. And Xiong Tingbi He led the guardsmen and shot the first, second, and third master with only three arrows.
Of course this is a story. Xiong Tingbi did not use three arrows. Only the boss was killed by Xiong Tingbi with a tiger-force bow. The heavy bow of more than 120 kilograms shot three arrows in total, and only one arrow was shot. It penetrated the head of the first master and killed him on the spot. The second and third masters were not killed by Xiong Tingbi, but were defeated by the Ming Dynasty soldiers during the pursuit and roundup.
The second boss was killed by a bomb. He was not blown to pieces, but his body was filled with caltrops.
The third master was captured and sent to work as a miner in the Shengzhou coal field after picking bells. The coal field was a labor-intensive job and the emperor was frugal. This kind of powerful labor could not be wasted.
But the story was passed down and became known as Three Arrows Dingyin Mountain. Among them, only the boss was shot to death by Xiong Tingbi.
Qi Jiguang resembles Wei Qing, and Li Rusong resembles Huo Qubing. Now Li Rusong resembles Qi Jiguang, and Xiong Tingbi resembles Li Rusong.
"It will never end! It will never end!" Liu Changshan stood up suddenly, his scalp numb with shock. As the story spreads, there will be some deviations, but judging from the source, Oda City is Oda Nobunaga's envoy, and eighty percent of the information he received is true.
Qi Jiguang is difficult enough. Li Rusong is famous for his bad temper. He is not afraid of death when fighting. The battlefield is always so fair. When he kills others, he will do the same. Being killed, in Liu Changshan's view, Li Rusong was nothing to worry about. Sooner or later, such a person would be unlucky on the battlefield.
But now there is another Xiong Tingbi. As soon as he came out of the mountain, he became famous all over the world.
There are endless numbers of capable people with lofty ideals under the Emperor of Ming Dynasty!
"Songjiang Governor Shen Shixing has just completed a whipping method in Songjiang Prefecture." Kuroda Takataka now knows the intelligence of Ming Dynasty very well. Because of the opening of the sea, these public information only need to be obtained from miscellaneous newspapers. Get.
Shen Shixing completed the implementation of the One Whip Method in Songjiang Prefecture. This was the first time that the Ming Dynasty completed the pilot since Gui E proposed the One Whip Method in the eighth year of Jiajing. Although there were many compromises and struggles in the process, Finally, we found a consensus on currency tax.
In the face of the rolling trend of the Wanli Reform, there is no way out to be a rebel, because as long as you follow His Majesty's footsteps, you can be as rich as the enemy. Just look at Sun Kehong, the chief merchant of Songjiang Ocean Trading Company, a The lame man, who could only sit on a swivel chair, gained immense wealth just because he offered himself to the emperor! It has become a monopoly class of powerful right-wingers.
Liu Changshan was a little confused. He originally thought that after Zhang Juzheng and Qi Jiguang died, everything would be fine, but now it seems that it is all a false fantasy.
"What's the sound?" Oda Nobunaga frowned and looked outside. It seemed a little too noisy outside.
"No, General! Akechi Mitsuhide has rebelled!" A close aide ran in panicked, pointed outside and shouted in fear.
"Hurry up and send the message to Osaka Bay to guard the Sento Station!" Oda Nobunaga was stunned at first, and then stunned. In the flash of lightning, the only reinforcements Oda Nobunaga could think of were not his own retainers. But they came from the Nagasaki Xingdusi and Senhusuo of the Ming Dynasty.
Oda Nobunaga still owes 15 million silver to support the army and has not paid him!
As a creditor, how could Daming watch a debtor like him die!
(End of this chapter)