It is said that the average life span of ancient people was low, and that is a macro-level data. But as far as adults are concerned, as long as there are no major diseases or natural disasters, it is actually normal to live to the age of fifty or sixty.
The reason why the average life expectancy is low is that the mortality rate of young children remains high. Not to mention ordinary people, even relatives of the emperor will still encounter this kind of thing.
Take the family of the dumpster father as an example. Assuming that the dumper dad and his beautiful biological mother can both live to be sixty years old, then the average life span of the two people is sixty years old. However, after adding in the second son Zhu Cixuan who has died in infancy, the average life span of the family will be Life expectancy dropped directly to forty years!
If another child dies in infancy on this basis, the average life span of a family will become thirty.
At first glance, an uninformed person might think that the couple died young on their own initiative before the pigtails came.
Smallpox, measles, and plague are almost all incurable diseases in this era. Chickenpox has been alleviated somewhat after mastering the technique of vaccination with cowpox. But if you are unlucky, you will die if you are bitten by a dog, not to mention the plague that is raging everywhere.
Historically, Song Yingxing lived to be over seventy, which shows that the old man's health is not generally good, at least better than most of his contemporaries. If you take good rest and take good care of yourself, you may be able to live to be eighty years old if you work hard.
"Seventy years of life are rare in ancient times. I dare not expect to live to be eighty years old!"
Song Yingxing was very happy to hear that the prince was so sure that he could live past seventy, but he was also a little frightened. This was a secret, something that could not be leaked. Now that he knew it, there might be another change in the future.
"Song Aiqing doesn't have to be like this. The longer a minister like Song Aiqing lives, the greater his contribution to the court, the greater the help to this palace, and the more benefits to Wan Min. If Song Aiqing wants to serve as an official for one term, , to benefit the poor people in the world, then live a good life for me!"
First, let’s squeeze out the profits of the first twenty years of Old Song Dynasty. He has to be paid a salary of five thousand taels a year. If the investment is not recovered, the person in charge of the project will be ruined. A certain prince’s business of selling science and technology Wouldn’t it be a big loss?
"Your Highness is ridiculous. I only know a little bit about mechanics and other miscellaneous skills. Although I have the heart to help others from time to time, I know that my abilities are low and I am far from being able to benefit the poor people in the world!"
Song Yingxing has a very clear understanding of himself, and through years of experience accumulation, he also found that it is actually very difficult for laymen to accept novel machinery. The people of the Ming Dynasty still only have a manual level of understanding.
"Song Aiqing has a wide range of interests. Does he know about the large water-spinning spinning wheel that was widely used in the previous dynasty?"
A certain prince did not bother with the old Song leader about this matter. Instead, he started a new line and mentioned a thing that was more powerful than the Ackley textile machine that used water power for weaving. This was four hundred years earlier than the similar British machine. Year stuff.
"Your Highness, I naturally know that the energy efficiency of a large water-spun spinning wheel is far superior to that of ordinary manual work. However, it has obvious disadvantages. This thing requires a large amount of running water to start, so it is difficult to set up in areas lacking water."
The large water-driven spinning wheel can still be used in the south where water networks are dense, but it is almost extinct in some areas of the north where water is scarce. If it is pulled by livestock, the cost will be very high. In the end, it can only be replaced by cheap manpower.
"What if there is a power that can replace the power of running water to drive the big spinning wheel?"
The steam engine is a snake oil. As long as it can be mass-produced, it can be used for anything. This is why a certain prince directly asked Bo Jue and Wang Zheng to take charge of this project, so as to achieve "double insurance".
"Of course... Your Highness is referring to the steam engine?"
Song Yingxing suddenly realized that the steam engine had such wonderful uses. He had always thought that the prince ordered the development of this machine for border services.
"Of course! Steam engines don't require much water to work. They mainly burn coal. And our Ming Dynasty's coal reserves are vast and extremely cheap. Most of them are buried in the poor places of Shaanxi and Shanxi. If steam engines can be manufactured in large quantities, in the future It can be widely used in water-scarce areas in the north. Wouldn't it be more effective if used for mining, textiles, and transportation? It can also stimulate the local economy and create tens of thousands of job opportunities. Especially in northern Shaanxi, it is very short of water. , causing the land to be extremely barren, and farmers did not gain much from the fields in good years. I asked Shaanxi to inspect the Zuomaodi Daxing coal mine, gold mine, and oil field in order to gradually change this dilemma. A powerful steam engine is equivalent to a cow. A steam engine with wheels can do almost anything that a cow can do. A steam engine can also do anything that a cow cannot do. The only thing that makes a steam engine inferior to a cow is that it cannot eat or do anything. beef ramen!"
The northwest is short of water and abundant in coal. There is so much coal that each person can own a coal mountain. It is perfect to popularize steam engines in this place, because the price of coal is almost close to the land price.
As long as anyone saves enough money to buy a steam engine, he can become his own boss. Coal money can only be equivalent to a fraction of the cost of buying a steam engine, which is equivalent to driving a gasoline car in the Middle East.
Another benefit of popularizing this thing in Shaanxi is that the amount of ore extracted will be greatly increased, especially for gold mines. It is too inefficient to just rely on manual digging with picks and shovels.
The characteristics of the min-use version are that it has low horsepower and low price, so it needs to be affordable. In order to prevent braids from getting it, the local government has to send people to check it every day in the early days.
But this is all a story for later. In view of the current situation between ourselves and the enemy, the military version of the steam engine must be earlier than the civilian version. The production of all industrial products must meet military needs as a prerequisite.
"His Royal Highness's every word is as beautiful as a pearl, and your ministers are suddenly enlightened!"
Song Yingxing already understood the structure and principles of the steam engine, and discussed with Wang Zheng, Bo Jue and others from time to time how to improve it, but he never thought that this thing would be so useful.
If the scene described by the prince comes true, the future of this product is really unlimited. It will be applied to many industries and truly benefit Wanmin.
"The steam engine is the cornerstone of the industrialization process of our Ming Dynasty, and its importance is self-evident. What is industry? I think it is an industry that uses machinery to replace human and animal power to achieve efficient production. Only in this way can our Ming Dynasty be able to Realize ZTE. Because after industrialization, a large number of people who have lost their land will be absorbed into new industries to produce a wide range of commodities. These commodities are equivalent to crops on the land, and after being sold, they will become money. In this way , people will no longer need land to live. The impact of natural disasters in our Ming Dynasty will gradually decrease, and the conflicts caused by the loss of land will also be alleviated to a certain extent. After industrialization, our Ming Dynasty will also create more products. As a powerful weapon, the Donglu problem that has been a headache for the imperial court for twenty years will also be completely solved. It can be as small as the mirror I am looking into, the toothbrush I am using, as large as the airship that is about to take off, or the warship that is shaking the ocean. , are all industrial products. In the future, industry will be called the three major industries along with agriculture and commerce. A country without agriculture will not be stable, a country without commerce will not be rich, and a country without industry will not be strong!"
The steel production in the Ming Dynasty was not low. It reached about 160,000 tons during the Jiajing period, which was equivalent to the total steel production in Europe at the beginning of the 18th century.
In comparison, Braid's steel production was completely worthless. It was not even a fraction of that of the Great Dynasty, but it used the efficient strategy of the military group to defeat the once arrogant Ming Empire.
The reason is that the total industrial production capacity is not equal to the military industrial production capacity, and the industrial level cannot be fully applied to the military field. The military industry is an industry with a technological content much higher than that of ordinary military industry.
Coupled with a series of factors such as strategic errors, cowardice of the soldiers, and the court's lack of money, the Ming army suffered repeated defeats in the battle against the pigtails. In the end, the empire collapsed due to the cooperation between the pigtails and the rogue bandits.
The five northern regions are a heavy burden for the imperial court, and the annual relief budget will not be less than five million taels of silver.
The situation in Henan has deteriorated rapidly, and local officials can only manage to survive. A certain prince no longer intends to consider trying to save the place. He can only choose to ensure the safety of the city and remove the disaster in the countryside in batches.
The other four places are of salvage value. Shandong has a large number of gold mines, Shanxi has inexhaustible raw coal, and Shaanxi has the only oil field in the entire empire that can be exploited on a large scale.
Testing new mechanical equipment in these four places is a process of gradually realizing the "native products" buried in the ground. Although the cycle will be long, this critical step must be taken after all.
Even if only two of them can be self-sufficient within five years, it will reduce a great burden on the court. Especially Shaanxi and Shandong, if the two places in the east and west can be stabilized, a certain prince will feel very happy.
"Listening to His Highness's words is really better than studying for ten years!"
Xiong Renlin couldn't help but feel deeply that the Crown Prince's vision and awareness were far better than those of the officials. It was almost equivalent to standing on the top of Mount Tai and looking down at the world.
If the process of industrialization can be started as the prince said, the dilapidated situation facing the imperial court will definitely be fundamentally improved.
Loss of land, natural disasters, border affairs, and rogue bandits are all huge problems that cannot be solved overnight, but the prince has finally found a way to try, which at least seems very feasible.
The current situation is that no matter whether it works or not, you have to try it, otherwise it may endanger the country and the country. At least it is not too late to start implementing it now.
"On the road of exploring science and reviving the Ming Dynasty, I and everyone here are just students. Naturally, we need to learn from and make progress together. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. As long as we take solid steps forward every day One step at a time, and over time, you can embark on a new path.”
A certain prince is not like a scapegoat. He wants to encourage, promote, and praise his subordinates more. When encountering problems, he must come up with solutions as soon as possible instead of blindly getting angry and blaming others.
Anger is a sign of psychological immaturity!
Shifting the blame is a reflection of irresponsibility!
Unfortunately, the last emperor of the Ming Empire had both...
Many people believe that rage is the power of a king, which can intimidate his ministers and subdue the world. But what is the use of rage alone?
Did our Emperor Chongzhen become furious when he encountered the Qing army, and the Qing army knelt down on the spot?
From the time he ascended the throne to the present, Emperor Chongzhen, who is almost thirty years old, still gets angry at every turn, and then curses in anger.
After that, there is the widely familiar process of passing the blame. The "Edict of Sin" was issued out of necessity.
The people who talk about being diligent every day are actually doing useless work!
Emperor Chongzhen did not dare to offend the wealthy donors at all, he would just bully the poor people and collect taxes to their death.
The people were forced to rebel, and in the end they had to send troops to encircle and suppress them, and then taxed and expanded the army. This disgusting cycle led to the collapse of the Ming Dynasty.
Even if Emperor Chongzhen didn't know what happened in the past dynasties, he should at least know what happened in the late Yuan Dynasty, right?
Comparing the last emperors of Qin, Han, Jin, and Sui, Emperor Chongzhen is a typical master who plays his cards badly!
Qin II ignored the government affairs!
Emperor Xian of Han was kidnapped by Cao Cao!
Emperor Hui of Jin is a fool!
Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was so happy...
You said that Emperor Chongzhen ignored government affairs, but he went to court every day and rarely missed work.
You said that Emperor Chongzhen was manipulated by the officials, but he killed Jiu Qian as soon as he came up, catching Wei Eunuch off guard.
You said that Emperor Chongzhen was a fool. He approved all the memorials, although the results were all in the opposite direction.
As for the great success...
Sorry, due to the hard work of Emperor Chongzhen, he himself did not catch up with the time to celebrate his success!
Frequently angry and addicted to blaming others, this was the daily life of Emperor Chongzhen!
People's hearts are made of flesh, and I would like to add another sentence later: Emperor Chongzhen became a "scapegoat"!
Shenzong threw the blame to Zhang Juzheng!
Xizong passed the blame to Wei Zhongxian!
Emperor Chongzhen promoted this craft and directly handed it over to the civil and military officials of the entire dynasty!
Later on, it got to the point where I felt uncomfortable all over without dumping for a day, which was really amazing.
He was so dumped that the ministers could not avoid him. Every day when the ministers went to court, they were alert to the emperor's attempt to dump the blame at any time.
Other emperors discussed countermeasures with their ministers and generals, while Emperor Chongzhen trained all his ministers to become scapegoats.
What's even more subtle is that the "blame-shifting and subcontracting method" has actually been developed.
To give a recent example, in the winter, Emperor Chongzhen gave the fat man Yang Sichang full authority to handle the mountain building's defense against the Qing army's attack.
As a result, the fat man's bet was wrong and he hoarded Shandong's soldiers and horses in Dezhou. However, the clever Qing army bypassed this place and attacked Jinan. Not only did they destroy the city, but they also captured King De.
Yang Sichang did not want to take the blame for the emperor, so he passed all the responsibilities to the local officials of Shandong, including Yan Jizu, the governor of Shandong.
As a result, there were more than fifty local officials waiting to be executed in the capital jail. These people had to take the blame for Yang Sichang and were unable to defend themselves.
Emperor Chongzhen thought this method was very good, because if they didn't take the blame, Yang Sichang would take the blame. This was tantamount to admitting his mistakes in employment in disguise.
Yang Sichang contracted the responsibility, but he didn't want to bear it himself, so he subcontracted it.
This is where the "blame-shifting and subcontracting method" comes from, and it will gradually be promoted in the future...
Another "famous minister" named Yang, Yang Shicong, was actually able to blame his wife for being greedy.
It is impossible not to be influenced by what you hear and see when you go to court. This is called doing something good from above, and everyone below will follow suit!
Previously, the court had four ways of shifting blame.
One-to-many throwing, that is, Emperor Chongzhen threw the pot to his ministers.
If there are many pairs of scapegoats, the officials will pass the blame to the scapegoat.
One-to-one throwing, that is, Emperor Chongzhen threw the pot to the designated unlucky person.
Many versus many, that is, one party passes the blame to the other party.
With such a way of throwing people around, once the court meeting starts, it will be thrown around. How can the Ming Dynasty still be good?
Therefore, the conventional ending of a great dynasty is that the emperor throws him into the pot without any rice and dies in poverty in the end!
After a certain prince took charge of the country, the loyal ministers and good generals had no blame on their shoulders, so they naturally felt relaxed and were happy to serve the court.
If the scapegoat suddenly wakes up and continues to call on his ministers to take the blame for him, everyone will immediately become uncomfortable with it.
This game is very dangerous. I don’t know when I was carrying it on my back, but my head was lost...
