Therefore, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered that part of the official and private land should be allocated to cotton cultivation. As a result, when the cotton planting order was first implemented, it encountered resistance from many people. The people cherished the land and would never waste the land that could grow food on anything else. of.
After all, no matter what you plant, you have to pay field tax, not to mention that eating well comes before wearing warm clothes. For various reasons, even though the people were forced to plant cotton under the government's orders, they did not take care of it seriously and still put all their efforts into it. On food.
Seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered to plant more cotton flowers and pay taxes!
This order had an immediate effect, and the minds of the people in the Jiangnan area became active. Although growing food can fill their stomachs, it will cost money to pay taxes. There is no need to pay taxes to grow cotton. You only need to sell a handful of your efforts and harvest cotton next year. After selling the cotton for money, you can buy grain again.
The thinking of the common people is so simple and simple. Of course, the gentry and landlords will not let go of the preferential policies of the court. They have no shortage of food, so they are more ruthless than the common people in growing cotton.
It’s just a person who is covered in robes, not a sericulture person...
Cotton is extremely comfortable whether used to make clothes or quilts, so the price is not low. Too many people grow it at home and are reluctant to use it for themselves. Most of them are sold, leaving a little for their young children and grandchildren.
This is true even in the south, which has a variety of cotton, let alone the north. Lao Zhu promoted cotton, and the biggest beneficiaries were the people who had enough food and clothing. The lives of the poor people have not changed much. After all, cotton has only been officially planted for three or four years. The output still pales in comparison to the required population.
I think it will take more than ten or twenty years before cotton output increases and the price drops to truly benefit the world. However, this is also common sense. Even the coal studied by the Ministry of Industry is the same. No matter how cheap it is, there will always be people who can't afford it. Those who cannot afford it are precisely those who need it most...
However, things still have to be done. For example, cotton has been introduced into the country for who knows how long, but the wise kings and ministers of the previous dynasties have never promoted it.
The same is true for coal. Coke ironmaking had already begun in the Song Dynasty. This was a very important and epoch-making invention in the history of metallurgy. Compared with Europe, China was hundreds of years earlier.
China has never lacked innovation, but it rarely serves the people at the bottom. It is more in line with the needs of the ruling class to keep the people ignorant and weak. But now, times have changed.
The world is about to be connected, and the era of sticking to one-third of an acre of land is gone forever. Even though the isolation of the country can continue for a while, the general trend of the world is overwhelming. Those who follow it will prosper, and those who go against it will perish!
Facing the majestic trend with nowhere to hide, we should actively engage in it and take advantage of the situation. Like a golden carp, we can cross the dragon gate along the tide of the times and become the leader of the world again.
Zhu Biao thought so and did so, otherwise he could have asked the Ministry of Industry to study those luxury goods first and make a profit, but those things would not be beneficial to the country or the people.
If Zhu Biao was just a common man businessman or even a noble lord, then he wouldn't care so much, let alone put effort into planning, and would just make money with peace of mind. Anyway, at worst, he would lead some of his confidants and sneak out overseas. At this time, over there It’s all in chaos, and it wouldn’t be difficult for someone with money to get themselves an autonomous territory.
But he is the crown prince of the country, so his roots are here and cannot be abandoned, so he will make plans day after day, year after year, because he knows that if he only cares about his own death, he will not care about the flood. He entertains himself with endless thoughts for the rest of his life, and he will definitely regret it when the day comes. "
People always have responsibilities when they are alive. He will be responsible for the country and the Ming Dynasty. When Zhu Biao stopped thinking, he saw that his father had ordered people to open the five-dragon gongzhu incense burner that was burning incense. , took out the half-burned smoke, and threw the dark coal in with great interest.
The eunuch was ordered to light it and watch happily. After looking at it for a long time, he said: "Those coal mountains belong to the imperial court, so the cost is nothing. The price for selling them to the common people should be lower."
Zhu Biao shook his head and said: "It's already low enough. If it goes any lower, it will be a huge blow to other merchants who sell coal for a living. Besides, there aren't many that can be sold to the people this year. After all, the northern frontier army also needs a big one." number."
Zhu Yuanzhang calmed down after hearing this, and he nodded and said: "Yes, there have been continuous wars over the grassland in the past few days. Although it has not affected our Ming Dynasty, such movements have to be guarded against. These coals are given priority to the border troops."
Zhu Biao responded: "Even if you open a factory next to a coal mine, the initial investment is indispensable. I just told you that I would spend fifty thousand taels from the Ministry of Household Affairs..."
Zhu Yuanzhang sat back and said: "Yes, but the Ministry of Industry must arrange coal production as soon as possible. It is already autumn, and we cannot delay."
After finishing speaking, Lao Zhu smiled bitterly and said: "This silver was put into the treasury yesterday. Early this morning, all the ministries sent memorials asking for money. The Ministry of War alone asked for one hundred thousand taels, the rest of the staff wanted fifty thousand taels, and the Ministry of Rites asked for 20,000 taels." Two, the Ministry of Household Affairs said that one hundred thousand taels would be kept for oneself, but the lion opened his mouth."
When Zhu Biao heard this, he replied helplessly: "It's rare for a big piece of fat to suddenly fall from the sky. Everyone in the department is probably thinking that if they are quick, they will be slow, and there will be no soup in the end."
The father and son said a few useless words casually, and then Lao Zhu looked at the still burning incense burner and said, "You are going to meet a lot of people tonight. What are your plans?"
Zhu Biao nodded and said: "I didn't think too much when I invited yesterday. I just wanted to take advantage of the situation to see who is close and far away. I didn't expect that this morning would lead to this situation. Let's see what Hu Weiyong's plan is tonight."
Zhu Yuanzhang was a little confused when he thought about the situation in the early dynasty. It is said that he just wanted to take down the local officials who had violated the law, and had no intention of involving the capital or the northern frontier army.
After all, he had a plan for both aspects. He would just wait for the time to close the net. The gain would be greater than the loss by trying to scare the snake first, but Hu Weiyong's actions were like a fish-destroying net.
Zhu Biao continued: "Hu Weiyong is a smart man. He should be just testing. Things are really getting serious. Although my father's plan is messed up, he is really going to lose his head. I guess tonight He should take the initiative to bow his head."
Zhu Yuanzhang frowned. Hu Weiyong's reckless temptation was really not in line with his usual style of doing things. After the struggle with Yang Xian, Hu Weiyong had become very steady and mature in his work, and had the bearing of a prime minister.
It can be felt from his relaxed and free-spirited defeat of Wang Guangyang that he has completely emerged from the influence of Li Shanchang and can be said to have established his own sect. The six yamen of Zhongshu Province and even some noble generals respect him.
Normally such a smart person wouldn't be so reckless, but he just did it, even going into battle himself, which forced him to think twice.
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