After returning to Xiangxian County, I sent someone to send Wu Fu away and then I called Li Si and others over.
He briefly talked about the Wufu's attachment to the court, and omitted the part about being tied up the mountain. At the end, he said: "There must still be people like them who went to live in the mountains to escape the war and were unaware of the changes in the world. This is very important to the Qin Dynasty. Adverse."
Of course, the more important thing is to avoid taxes and corvee like the people in the Peach Blossom Spring.
Li Si agreed: "Your Majesty is wise. This situation has indeed not been considered. What do you think?"
Ever since I went up the mountain to see the living conditions of Wufu and the others, I already had an idea, and said slowly: "Order all the counties, counties, li, and pavilions to find these Guizhou heads hidden in the mountains and inform them of the current situation in Daqin. If you are willing, If they move down the mountain, the court can help them build houses."
Yu He cupped his hands and said, "What if they don't want to?"
"Tell them that even if they don't move down the mountain, they still have to pay taxes according to the population, and they will make a wise choice." Large-scale farming cannot be done in the mountains. Even if the taxes are much relaxed now, just collecting firewood and a few acres of land are enough. Definitely not affordable.
Nowadays, the population of Da Qin is more than 40 million, which is still not too many. There are probably many such people, especially in the old Chu land. For the development of Great Qin, these people have to make some contributions. They cannot hide while the construction of Great Qin is completed and then come out and enjoy the results after the construction of Great Qin is completed. It is not that cheap.
None of them had any objections and immediately left to get it done.
Meng He and I were the only ones left in the palace. I glanced at him. He had been absent-minded since I was tied up, and he was careful when talking to me. As my bodyguard, this state of affairs is not acceptable.
"Meng He." I said calmly: "You have an unshirkable responsibility for this incident. Fortunately, I accidentally caught the anti-Qin faction with my Baijuan. It can be considered that you have redeemed your sins, but I still have to ignore it. As punishment, let’s fine you a year’s salary! You must be careful when doing things in the future and don’t do it again.”
The Meng family is also a big family in Mei County, so a year's fine is nothing.
This is partly due to my arrogance, and secondly, Meng He has been following me since I was the prince. He has been in Xianyang for a long time and has only known those cowards in the officialdom. He lacks understanding of the sinister hearts of people in the world. I can't blame him too much. It is best for the superior not to blame his immediate ministers, but to rely on him to protect my safety from now on. Let him know my majesty and feel that I am merciful and considerate.
Sure enough, when Meng He heard my punishment on him, he quickly bowed and said with tears of gratitude: "I am guilty of death! Your Majesty forgives me. I am deeply afraid. Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"Okay, you go get ready and leave Changsha County tomorrow." After thinking about it, I ordered again: "I have made arrangements at Wufu's place. The people under you should be warned about Mimu and Mi If you let out even a single word about what is appropriate, you will be killed without mercy!"
Meng He quickly bowed and said yes. The stone in his heart disappeared, and he returned to his previous calmness and ability and retreated.
————
One month later, it was already mid-April, the weather gradually started to get hotter, and the convoy also arrived at Pengze Official Kiln Mansion.
It is said to be called Pengze Official Kiln Mansion, but it is still nearly two hundred miles away from Pengze (today's Poyang Lake) and belongs to Fan County, Lujiang County. Historically, this place belonged to Jiujiang County, but this timeline divided it into a Lujiang County. The historical seat of Jiujiang County was Shouchun, which was too narrow from north to south. It was more reasonable to divide a new county with the Yangtze River as the boundary.
He Qi has grown up and managed such a large government office in an orderly manner. After visiting the porcelain workshop, everyone returned to the palace and reported to me in detail.
"There are now eleven official kilns in Lujiang County, mainly used by the imperial court and government. There are more than forty private kilns. After the porcelain is produced, the former Ba family and the current Shaofu will select the best ones for use in the Western Regions. land and trade across the Qin Dynasty.”
I nodded with satisfaction. Unlike handmade products, porcelain produced by official kilns and private kilns is sold to different customers, so there is basically no conflict of interest.
“Who controls the quality of folk kiln porcelain?”
He Qi said respectfully: "In compliance with your Majesty's order, the local county magistrate will inspect the quality of the porcelain. Too low-quality porcelain will not be allowed to be sold. Private kilns with low yields of good products will be forced to close. Only after the craftsmanship is improved to reach the specified quality ratio can it be reopened." kiln."
I thought about it carefully and ordered: "The county magistrate does not know how to make porcelain. From now on, the Pengze official kiln government will send officials to inspect it. However, there is no need to force the closure of private kilns with a low quality ratio. They will only be given a label of 'poor quality' certified by the government." Just give the porcelain kiln a warning. Even if it is inferior porcelain, there are still people in Guizhou who are willing to buy it, and let Guizhou decide whether they can survive."
It is best for the court not to interfere in matters that can be determined by market behavior. The quality of porcelain can be seen at a glance. Once the reputation of unscrupulous merchants is bad, there will naturally be a market to teach them how to behave.
He Qi respectfully said yes.
Then I took people to see nearby rice cultivation.
When we arrived at the nearby farmland, the rice in the field had already headed, and the fields were lush and green. Many farmers were diverting water for irrigation. With the help of waterwheels, planting rice was much more convenient.
Jihe had already rushed over from Xunyang and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, the rice in the south of the Yangtze River can now be harvested twice a year. Each county has built large warehouses to store rice under the instructions of the supervisor. Now the grain production in Lujiang County I can more than feed the people of the three counties. I would like to express my gratitude to Your Majesty on behalf of the head of Guizhou!"
Food is the top priority. Seeing the scene in front of me and hearing Jihe's words, I was very pleased and felt much happier. I smiled and said: "The prosperous age of Guizhou is when it has its own food."
Then he said to Li Si and others behind him: "Since Qianshou has three years of surplus, we can promote three meals a day, one meal each for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You should do it as soon as possible."
Yu He was a little puzzled and said doubtfully: "Your Majesty, if there is really so much food in Guizhou, maybe he will eat one more meal. Why should the court promote it?"
I turned around and looked at him and asked, "Food is the most important thing for the people. Why does the imperial censor think eating is such a big deal?"
"Uh..." Yu He was a little confused and said cautiously: "Go back to Your Majesty, because if you don't eat, you will starve to death..."
"Hahaha..." I laughed and said, "This is the eternal truth of heaven and earth!"
Then the conversation changed: "It's not just that! Let me give you an example. I have seen many soldiers of the Qin army. They fought bravely and were determined, but they only have one huge weakness. Zhang Han, do you know what it is?"
Zhang Han shook his head. In his opinion, the Qin Army now has the restructured "Qin Army Code" and the Supervisory Army. Both combat and will have undergone earth-shaking changes. From the perspective of soldiers alone, he doesn't think If there is any big weakness, he cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, please show me!"
