Land annexation is a law of rise and fall that dynasties of all dynasties cannot escape.
There was a heavy snowfall in Gyeonggi Province. The hungry and cold poor people sold their sons, daughters, and wives. They sold their ancestral land with tears and a small bowl of rice with blood. In the end, they brought a broken bowl of porridge for disaster relief. Survive in front of the shed.
While the rich wine and meat smell, the road with frozen bone.
Jia Cong, a carnivore, stood in the cold wind and stared at the emaciated victims one after another, and stared eagerly at the erratic heat in the porridge shed...
"Teacher, is my family going to do this?"
"Um."
The simple word "hmm" made Jia Cong feel panicked.
Xu Jin put his big hand on Jia Cong's shoulder and sighed but said nothing. Ning and Rong have large tracts of land in the capital, far exceeding the rewards given by the imperial court since the founding of the People's Republic of China.
how come? Is it possible to buy just one acre?
People are greedy for profit.
"Let's go into the city. I will take you to another place."
Xu Jin patted Jia Cong hard on the shoulder, turned around and walked towards the carriage.
Jia Cong looked at an old man who had received porridge and rice. He walked tremblingly under a thatched shed and slowly fed the porridge in the bowl to the mouth of a skinny little baby.
The baby wore several pieces of tattered clothes, but he was still shivering from the cold. It wasn't until he drank a few mouthfuls of hot rice porridge that he smiled at his grandfather.
That smile stung Jia Cong's nerves. He wanted to give away the golden fur on his body, but finally held back.
He couldn't help but curse: "Fuck the prosperous Zhaoyuan era, fuck the country that is strong and prosperous, and fuck the heavenly kingdom..."
The disrespectful words frightened the two dragon guards standing next to Jia Cong. Jia Shiyi frowned and reminded: "Young Master, be careful what you say!"
"What should you say?"
Jia Cong pointed at the poor victims and angrily said: "Will the civil and military officials in high halls and elegant uniforms report this real scene to the saint and His Majesty? They will only use colorful articles to praise the false prosperity. After all, the emperor Governed by the arch, hundreds of officials and herdsmen. Even if they don't say anything, the emperor can only hear and see."
With that said, Jia Cong turned his attention to the two dragon guards.
With a probing look in his eyes, he asked in a deep voice: "As His Majesty's eyes and ears, the Dragon Guards can also report this to Your Majesty? Don't lie to me, I will personally go to the palace to ask Your Majesty."
The two dragon guards looked at each other and dared not speak.
The answer is obvious. They are just untouchables. How can the emperor care about the life and death of untouchables when he is a member of the army?
snort!
Jia Cong tossed his sleeves and left, the sullen look on his face not diminishing at all after boarding the carriage.
Xu Jin had already anticipated this situation and said calmly: "The crisis of dynasty change has always sprouted from land annexation. However, this has become the most difficult problem to solve. I have traveled far and wide as a teacher and have not yet thought of a suitable solution. There are too many people to offend, but if you touch it, you will immediately be attacked by an unstoppable attack. It is not one person or a group of people, but almost all the noble clansmen, civil and military officials and even 99% of the scholars who are all over the government and the public. !」
"Refugees, people who have lost their land are called refugees. It's really ridiculous! Teacher, are you all going to watch the people starve to death and freeze to death? One day, a single spark will start a prairie fire. How could the revolted refugees spare the former carnivores? Aren't they afraid?"
Looking at his childish disciple, Xu Jin smiled bitterly and said, "When can we govern the world without scholars? A thousand-year-old family and a hundred-year dynasty can just change the emperor."
Bang!
Jia Cong punched the carriage hard and said unwillingly: "What about the nobles? The nobles are born in the dynasty. Aren't they worried that when the dynasty falls, they will be buried with them?"
"Honorable nobles cannot control the government. As I said before, when can you govern the world without scholars? My dear disciple, the first lesson I will teach you today is to let you understand one thing. If you don't study for the imperial examination, You will never be able to dominate the world, and you will never be able to realize your ambitions."
Xu Jin stared at him with extremely calm eyes
The idea of a railroad carriage, also called a horse-drawn train, had already been in the emperor's mind as early as his journey south to Beijing.
If you don’t engage in trains, are you still a time traveler?
Just like carrying a gun, as an absolute killer in the cold weapon era, it would not be on the table in the hot weapon era.
The same goes for horse-drawn trains, which were hardly worth mentioning in the industrial age.
But there is no way, it is still only the feudal era, and we have to wait until the industrial revolution, in the mid-to-late eighteenth century.
Horse-drawn trains are the product of compromise.
After all, the steam engine is still in its infancy and has been slowly being improved.
But Zhu Yixi couldn't wait.
From Jilin in the east, to Turpan in the west, to the Yinshan Mountains in the north, and to the South China Sea in the south, such vast land was captured during his reign.
The cost of governance is high, which makes it difficult to maintain. After all, it is too big.
So the train is an indispensable thing.
Since the locomotive has to wait, let’s add the rails first.
Pillow, rail, locomotive, the three elements of a train.
If the locomotive doesn't work, then make do with horse-drawn trains first. When the time is right and steam engines can be used, it will be a matter of course without any obstacles.
Of course, as far as Zhu Yixi knew, the original track was not made of iron, but made of stones.
Later, tracks made of wood, which were very common in British coal mines, appeared. Of course, it was not trains that ran on them at that time, but horse-drawn carriages.
He wouldn't consider any of this and just used the rails.
Anyway, with the extensive mining of coal mines, fuel is no longer restricted, and the output of Zunhua Iron Mine is quite acceptable, so it is natural to use rails.
In order to obtain more iron, he even liberalized the operation of iron plants, thus stimulating the influx of more private capital.
Of course, if nothing else, most of them are bureaucrats and nobles participating.
The emperor was not surprised by this.
Without a new aristocracy, how can we replace the old aristocracy?
Isn't the so-called revolution in Britain just the result of the birth of a concubine among the nobles? Cromwell was originally from a noble family.
This is the law of history. Those who uncover the tombs of the old dynasties are often their own people, such as the Tang Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty, and the Yuan Dynasty Qing Dynasty.
"First from Yuquan Mountain to Beijing, then from Yuquan Mountain to Xuanfu, and then to Datong."
Zhu Yixi looked at the map and sketched the railway layout of the Ming Dynasty in his mind.
When pig iron production was not enough, it became very necessary to lay railways in frontier areas.
"Your Majesty, there are many people who are curious about the railway tracks in the capital."
Zhang Qi said with a smile: "After hearing that for just a few coppers, you can take a walk on the carriage, many people are willing. It is much cheaper than renting a car."
"That's inevitable."
Zhu Yixi's energy was pulled back. He turned his head and looked at Zhang Qi: "As long as it becomes popular in the capital and the people accept the railway and know its convenience, it will naturally spread to all over the world."
"Then we won't have to worry about sales."
That's right, from the beginning, Zhu Yixi did not completely regard railways as exclusive to the military, but planned to expand them to the private sector, so that ordinary people can appreciate the charm of transportation development.
As long as the money is received and the cost can be repaid, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will not lose money.
When the time comes, the money collected will be enough to cover the whole of China one by one.
Interest is eternal and is a perpetual motion machine.
Moreover, for the emperor, mastering the railways was equivalent to mastering the financial channels. Although the initial cost was a bit high, it could not sustain the accumulation of money over time.
"If it were open to the public, just the daily round trip from Yuquan Mountain to Beijing would earn hundreds of dollars!"
Zhang Qi squinted his eyes and said carefully: "There are about 100,000 princes and nobles in Beijing. They all drink spring water from Yuquan Mountain. They only charge ten coppers for a bucket of water. How can they not get more than 10,000 buckets of water every day?"
「
Looking at the little apprentice in front of him, the words that the saint and the old man had said many times rang in his mind: Jia Cong of Rongguo Mansion has a tiger in his heart. If it succeeds, it will benefit the world and be a blessing to the Great Xia; if it fails, it will bring disaster to the Central Plains and the evil will spread in all directions.
This young disciple came from a top noble family in Great Xia, but he had a soft heart and cared about the people. He should be the heir to the mantle.
There is a powerful force behind him, which can support his own way to benefit the world and benefit all people.
Crunchy...
The prosperity of Wanping County seems to be two different worlds from the homeless huts outside the city.
The sounds of hawking everywhere and the laughter of children weaving together the gorgeous articles praising the saints that Jia Cong read in the Di newspaper.
So unreal!
Crunch…
"Sir, the Thousand Chong Tower has arrived!"
Xu Jin lifted the car curtain and walked out of the car with Jia Cong.
The door number of Qianzhonglou is gorgeous, and the lanterns and red silk hanging on it show the grandeur of this restaurant.
As soon as Jia Cong followed Xu Jin out of the carriage, a rich middle-aged man greeted him at the door.
"Ah! Mr. Wenkui is here, and I didn't come far to welcome you. It's really rude and disrespectful!"
"Shopkeeper Xue is so kind. I came to Wanping on business today, but I have been craving for food. I want to taste the delicacies of Qianzhonglou again. No, I, my disciple, have come to disturb shopkeeper Xue."
It seemed that Xu Jin was familiar with Shopkeeper Xue. While the two were chatting, Shopkeeper Xue turned his attention to Jia Cong who was standing aside.
He only looked at Jia Cong once and exclaimed: "But Mr. Cong of Rongguo Mansion?"
Jia Cong's mind was still on the victims outside the city, so he responded perfunctorily: "Yes."
"Oh, what a coincidence. The head of the house is also upstairs today, and he mentioned Mr. Cong just now."
With a smile on his face, shopkeeper Xue hurriedly welcomed Xu Jin and Jia Cong into the building: "I went to the capital a few years ago to deliver the account books, and I met Mr. Cong from afar. He is really a man of orchids and jade trees, a man among gods..."
"you flatter me."
Jia Cong cupped his hands and responded. As soon as he entered the building, he saw Xue Pan walking down the stairs.
When Xue Pan saw Jia Cong, he immediately wanted to rush over and give him a bear hug, but at a glance he saw Xu Jin beside him, who was decorated with Xiechi patterns and crimson official robes.
"Ouch..."
Xue Pan, who couldn't brake in the middle of the run, suddenly hit a table. If shopkeeper Xue hadn't stepped forward to help him, he would have hit his head and bled.
"Greetings to the Censor..."
"This is my teacher, Mr. Liuyuan Wenkui and the Imperial Censor of the Imperial Palace, Mr. Qingteng!"
After Jia Cong's introduction, Xue Pan became more respectful.
This man was not one of those bitter scholars from Jinling City. He was a true immortal. It was said that he rushed into the Goryeo palace with a sword and beheaded the regent of Goryeo. He was also respectfully sent out of the palace by the Goryeo kings and ministers.
After welcoming the two of them to the private room on the second floor, Xue Pan was so excited that he almost wanted to worship the gods.
After making tea and pouring water, he asked in a low voice: "Does Wenquxing still accept disciples? What do you think of me, brother?"
"Master Xue is not suitable for the imperial examination."
Xu Jin bluntly refused, but also gave Xue Pan a pointer: "I heard that Duke Pardon has asked the soldiers of the Rongguo Mansion to teach Master Xue martial arts. In the future, he can become a general and make great contributions!"
Xue Pan did not become depressed because of this, after all, it was just a whim. He smiled naively and said, "What you are saying is that I really don't like studying. But practicing martial arts is really hard. After coming to the capital, I didn't even have a good rest for a few days, and I never went to the east or west cities to play."
"The road to martial arts training is to practice in the summer and in the winter. If Mr. Xue wants to achieve something, enduring hardship is the only way..."
Xu Jin chatted with Xue Pan for a while, then suddenly changed the topic and asked: "Mr. Xue, I heard that your family is going to buy land in Gyeonggi Province. How much has it been bought now?"
ah?
Xue Pan couldn't turn around for a while, but shopkeeper Xue on the side answered for him.
"My lord, according to the old mistress's idea, the villain has been looking for a suitable Zhuangzi before the fight. It turns out that
We had reached an agreement on two things, but they were delayed due to the snowstorm. A few days ago, many people in the county were having difficulty making ends meet and wanted to sell their land, but..."
Shopkeeper Xue seemed to have something unspeakable in the middle of his words. He secretly glanced at Jia Cong and was lightly kicked by Xue Pan during his hesitation: "Say it!"
"But there were too many people interested in the middle and upper-class fields in Gyeonggi, and I couldn't afford to offend them. In the end, I only bought a hilly land, totaling no less than 200 acres."
Jia Cong frowned and asked, "Can't you offend me? Whose family do you belong to?"
Shopkeeper Xue smiled bitterly and said: "Master Cong, you have a clan, relatives, civil and military officials in the court... among them are the stewards of your family!"
"My steward? Who is his name?"
"The son of Mr. Lai, the chief steward of your mansion, Lai Shangrong."
At this time Xu Jin interjected: "Tell me more specifically, how did Lai Shangrong buy land? How much did he buy? Where are they located?"
Shopkeeper Xue glanced at the imperial censor in surprise. After Xue Pan nodded, he told everything he knew.
It turns out that after the snowstorm hit Gyeonggi, many poor people could no longer survive before the twelfth lunar month. There were people in all the states and counties in Gyeonggi who sold their fields to survive.
Shopkeeper Xue, as a confidant of the Xue family, would not let go of such an opportunity to buy land. He went to inquire around despite the wind and snow, and actually came across an excellent Zhuangzi.
This village is full of poor families, and the only old scholar has not survived the cold winter. After some intimidation and a suitable price, most of the families are willing to sell their land to the Xue family, or even sell themselves into the family in order to survive.
Originally, the contract was about to be signed, but Lai Shangrong appeared. In the name of Rongguo Mansion, he forced the houses in Wanping County not to sign land deeds, and transferred the entire village to his name for less than one-third of the price.
Even the entire people in Zhuangzi were forcibly turned into tenant slaves, and several families who were unwilling to sell their land disappeared inexplicably into the snow.
When Hu Youwei, the magistrate of Wanping County, learned that the incident was caused by the steward of Rongguo Mansion, he licked his face and welcomed Lai Shangrong into the county government office. He entertained him with good wine and food, and found half a village nearby, and together Sold to "Rongguofu" at a low price.
The reason is that Lai Shangrong can say something nice in front of the pardon master. After all, he has stayed in Wanping for long enough, and he wants to join the Jia family and soar into the sky like Jia Hua.
When Jia Cong was so angry that he wanted to rush to Lai's house and kill Lai Shangrong, Xu Jin said leisurely: "Among those families who disappeared inexplicably, one woman survived and she happened to be rescued by the Prince of Beijing County. Only then did she He learned about the incident of going to Longjing Guard to inform him. "
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