As soon as Yang Fan finished speaking, there was a lot of discussion below.
Obviously Yang Fan also told the truth. It is impossible for Yang Fan to stop production of his steel plant for them. But Yang Fan is also willing to arrange a way out for them.
"May I ask General Yang, what production technology can you transfer?" Wang Qinghai, the head of the Wang family, asked.
Yang Fan waved his hand, and immediately a dozen soldiers carried wooden boxes to the second floor.
The soldiers used crowbars to pry open the wooden boxes. Then he took away the teacups and teapots on the table, and took out many steel products and placed them on the table.
From everyone's perspective, these products include various farm implements, various tools, and construction materials, such as various steel nails of different sizes and proportions.
Li Cunxin picked up a hammer and looked at it carefully. The workmanship is very good and looks sturdy. One end is a hammer head, and the other is a horn-shaped hook. He couldn't help but ask: "General Yang, what is this hook for?"
Yang Fan smiled, walked over, took out a steel nail, hammered it into a piece of wood, then pressed the wood with his left hand and used the hook of the hammer to lift the nail out.
Everyone was amazed, it was a really nice design and very easy to use.
"Many of the products here are very well designed, have many functions, and have sturdy and durable structures." Yang Fan introduced.
Zhao Dongguo became interested in the various enamel products he had just taken out. I couldn't help but ask: "General Yang, is this basin made of porcelain? How can it be made so thin? Can it be durable?"
Yang Fan said: "This is not porcelain, it is an enamel product. It is a bit like cloisonné. It is glazed on a thin iron sheet and then fired. It can be made into hundreds of daily necessities such as teacups, washbasins, and food boxes. The market demand for this thing is huge, and you can make a lot of money.”
The shopkeepers looked at the dazzling array of metal products, only a few of which they had seen before, and many of them they didn't even know what they were for.
After Yang Fan's explanation, they suddenly understood, and they also realized the convenience of these tools and their many uses in daily life and production.
What excites them most is the many modern designed human-powered agricultural tools.
For example, a ground turning tool that uses the principle of leverage. No cows are needed at all, a person can turn over large chunks of soil with just his feet.
Everyone's eyes widened in surprise at the hand-pulled plow with wheels. Why would they raise cattle if there was such a thing?
Zhou Fen picked up a strange hoe. There is also a rake on the back. This side is used for hoeing and the other side is used as a rake.
The small iron trolley has bearings and is very light to push.
Various sickles, hatchets, scissors, saws, carpentry tools, axes and hundreds of other tools. It looks different from the tools of this era, but if you look closely, you will find that this thing is designed to be very easy to use.
If you look closely, the steel mouths of these things are very good, and they cannot be made with Ming iron. We must use Yang Fan’s good steel.
Hand-pulled plows and manual plowing tools are like a piece of pie from the sky for people who cannot afford to buy or raise cattle. With this thing, you can plant several acres of land.
Not only were the people of the Ming Dynasty unable to afford and raise cattle, but the society at the end of the Ming Dynasty was extremely dark and the legal system collapsed.
The cattle and horses raised by the people themselves have few opportunities to use them. Landowners, gentry, and even bullies and scoundrels often took farmers' cattle away during busy farming periods and used them for nothing. Over time, no one raised cattle.
And Zhu Yuanzhang's grain chief system is even more terrible.
The government selects wealthy households in the village as grain chiefs to collect taxes on their behalf. The grain chief must make up for the shortfall with his own family property.
What's even more stringent is that the grain chief has to pay his own money to transport the grain over long distances and deliver it to a warehouse designated by the government.
The sacks used for transportation, the labor hired for loading and unloading, and the cost of renting carriages and horses all have to be paid for by the grain grower himself.
When they arrived at the warehouse, the officials even started to fight.
It means filling the bucket full of grain and tipping it. Then kick with your feet. Whatever grain is kicked off belongs to the county magistrate, and the rest can be put into storage.
Scholars in the Ming Dynasty, once they were released as county magistrates, had to practice kicking and fighting skills every day. This was the ability to make a living.
After this combination of punches, whoever becomes the grain manager will basically go bankrupt.
As a result, the people of Ming Dynasty were competing for poverty. The poorer you are, the safer you are.
Anyone who thinks about getting rich through hard work will find that hard work can only make you bankrupt.
If you plant two more mulberry trees than others, well, you are a rich man.
Next year's grain manager will be you.
The land is also becoming barren.
As the famous proverb goes, an ugly wife, poor fields, and shabby cotton-padded jackets are the three treasures of a farm family. An ugly wife, no one cares about not causing trouble; no one fights for an unfertile field; a worn-out cotton-padded jacket can keep out the cold.
Now, these artifacts that can plow the ground with just one person's strength have appeared, which are simply too popular for farmers.
With this, who would raise cattle?
Whether or not you have large livestock is an important criterion for judging whether you are a wealthy household in rural areas. This thing is very in line with the current national conditions of Ming Dynasty.
In addition to the earth-moving artifact, there are also various other human tools. There are hundreds of kinds. Almost all of them are designed to use human power instead of animal power.
Suddenly the atmosphere on the entire second floor became lively. These things are sure to be very popular when produced. It’s so expensive to raise cattle, and it also requires labor.
Yang Fan looked at these people with satisfaction.
The production of daily necessities is very complicated and there are many types.
This thing has high added value and is far more profitable than steelmaking. But Yang Fan doesn't have the energy to do this. He could only focus on heavy industry.
So it is better to release technology and cultivate a group of factory owners. Get yourself more supporters.
If we want to change the current vicious cycle in Ming Dynasty, Yang Fan alone cannot do it.
These people talked for a long time, exchanged opinions with each other, and finally became quiet.
Yang Fan smiled, as long as you are interested. I'm not afraid that you won't get on my boat.
Patriarch Zhou Fen raised his hands and said, "Master Yang, my Zhou family is very interested in these things. I don't know what your regulations are."
Yang Fan said: "I am planning to build an industrial zone in the northwest corner of Zunhua City. You can invest and set up a factory in the industrial zone as a sole proprietor, or you can invest in a joint-stock company as a joint venture."
"If you build a factory on your own, you can buy technology and equipment from me. You can invest in building the factory yourself and operate it yourself. Xinghe Iron Factory will provide you with raw materials."
"If the form of a joint-stock system is adopted, I will use technology, equipment, and land to buy shares. I will hold 30% of the shares. The remaining 70% will be publicly sold to the public in the form of stocks. For one tael of silver per stock, you can enthusiastically participate Purchase. The major shareholders form a board of directors and obtain voting rights in factory matters based on their equity. The board of directors forms the factory’s management organization.”
After Yang Fan finished speaking, these people started discussing in private.
It didn't take long for them to reach a consensus. These technologies are all provided by Yang Fan, and the materials are also provided by Yang Fan. Maybe the training of workers will also depend on Yang Fan.
In this case, if you do it yourself, there will be too many problems and too many risks. If the joint-stock system is good and Yang Fan is brought in, many problems will be solved.
Everyone expressed their acceptance of the joint-stock form.
"Well, when I come back from the imperial capital to meet with His Majesty, I will immediately prepare for the establishment of a securities and futures trading market. At the same time, the first batch of factories will be established, and the related factories will be publicly issued stocks on the exchange. Everyone can subscribe directly. Enough capital has been collected As soon as we get it, we will start building factories and installing equipment in the industrial park.”
Yang Fan looked at the crowd and finally said: "I would like to make a suggestion. Let's form a steel industry federation to be responsible for coordinating and coordinating the overall industry affairs. It will serve all workshops, factories and mines in all industries. To the outside world, it is called the North. Steel Alliance. What do you think?"
Everyone agreed and said this was a good thing.
In a social environment like the Ming Dynasty, people are accustomed to holding together to keep warm. Everyone supports this proposal.
"I propose that Brother Wei be the first president. Brother Wei has rich experience and wide connections. He will start the organization first. From now on, the president of the next year will be elected at the end of each year. What do you think?"
Everyone raised their hands and said, "It's all up to Mr. Yang to make the decision."
