The Daitian method is a farming method promoted by Zhao Guo, an official during the period of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty. It is beneficial to maintaining soil fertility, resisting wind and drought, and can also effectively increase agricultural output. If done well, it can even double the output of ordinary areas.
However, because the Daida method has too high requirements for agricultural production tools and livestock such as cattle, horses, and donkeys, and the input cost is very high, it is difficult for the decentralized small family farmer economy to bear such costs, so the Daitian method has been difficult to promote from the beginning to the end.
Everyone knows that this is a good method, but most people cannot afford it, so since the late Western Han Dynasty, few places can still use the Daitian method for farming.
The decentralized agricultural production dominated by the small-scale peasant economy can hardly bear the cost of the farmland method, but the clan-manor-style agricultural production led by Liu Bei can bear such costs.
Liu Bei not only took the lead in investing in the purchase of cattle, but also in the purchase of horses, donkeys, mules and other livestock for agricultural production, thus motivating family members to invest in the purchase of livestock.
In addition, because the Eastern Han Dynasty abolished the salt and iron monopoly policy, local tycoons could reasonably and legally own their own salt and iron production lines, as long as they paid taxes to the local salt officials and iron officials in a serious manner.
The Liu clan itself has its own production line, but the clan is too weak to become bigger and stronger. The products it produces are barely enough for daily needs, let alone want to expand production.
Iron farm tools, which are very important for agricultural production, are also an important part of the Shirota method. Due to limitations in iron smelting technology, the price of iron farm tools remains high, so it is difficult for ordinary farmers to dare to use iron farm tools to operate their fields. .
This will not only reduce crop yields, but also prevent insect eggs hidden in the ground from freezing to death because the soil cannot be plowed in the winter, easily triggering insect disasters after spring and further reducing food production.
It is difficult to obtain sufficient output in agriculture without sufficient capital investment. The poorer you are, the less able you are to obtain sufficient output, and you can only fall into a vicious cycle and eventually go bankrupt.
After Liu Bei integrated the technical personnel of the Liu clan through his own prestige, he set up his own dedicated iron farm tool production factory within the Liu clan, and called on everyone to jointly invest in the production of a large number of farm tools for agricultural production to meet the needs of the Daitian method.
The profits generated are shared by all investors, and those who do not contribute cannot enjoy the dividends.
At the same time, Liu Bei required that each family with tenants in the Liu family must control the production commission of the tenants they manage within a certain proportion and must not exceed it. Once it exceeds, they will be punished, so as to safeguard the interests of the tenants and improve the tenants' income. production enthusiasm.
As a result, the tenant farmers of Liu's Manor no longer had to worry about hunger and could have food and clothing.
After completing operations in many aspects, the foundation for Liu's manor to implement the Daitian method of production has been laid. Since then, it has begun to implement the Daitian method of production, and achieved a gratifying increase in grain during last year's harvest.
Not only was Liu Bei able to accumulate a large amount of grain, he also acquired a group of technically remarkable blacksmiths, which in his opinion was also an important accumulation of wealth.
Not only that, because of Liu Bei and with the help of Han Rong, the Liu family's commercial profits were also very high.
The salt and iron system of the Eastern Han Dynasty is very different from the salt and iron system of the Western Han Dynasty. This is mainly reflected in the fact that the salt and iron officials of the Eastern Han Dynasty were mainly officials responsible for taxation, rather than the powerful officials in the Western Han Dynasty who were fully responsible for everything from production to sales.
The Eastern Han Dynasty did not implement a monopoly on salt and iron. The Yanguan and Tieguan only levied taxes on the sale of salt and iron. In this regard, given Liu Bei's current position, he really has to thank the Confucian disciples for demanding imperial power [no The excellent cultural tradition of competing with the people for profit.
It was precisely because of their repeated persistence that the violent salt and iron monopoly policy during the period of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty did not extend to the Eastern Han Dynasty.
And at this level, the Eastern Han Dynasty central government did not exercise specific control. The central government insisted on not competing with the people for profit, and adopted a "high-spirited and honest" attitude. The control of taxation mainly rested with the heads of counties and states.
There was a salt and iron officer in Zhuo County during the reign of Emperor Guangwu, but it was later abandoned. During the period of Emperor He of the Han Dynasty, due to the increase in salt and iron revenue, the salt and iron officer was reinstated until now.
Because of Han Rong's power in salt and iron, the Liu family's cost of obtaining iron ore in Zhuojun was kept very low. As a result, the Liu family could not only mass-produce iron farm tools for their own use, but also sell them throughout Zhuojun. Own farm tools.
On the other hand, under the protection of Han Rong, the Zhuojun iron official system levied iron taxes on Liu's family was also in a very reasonable state.
As a result, Liu was able to keep costs to a minimum in all aspects from obtaining raw materials to production and sales. Not only did the products have high quality, but the price for external sales was not high, and they also had the endorsement of the Zhuojun government. So in Zhuojun, Liu's ironware sales are booming.
With various sources of property, before Liu Bei arrived in Luoyang and officially became an official, he had already laid a rich family fortune and a solid foundation for the Liu family in Zhuo County, Zhuo County.
Therefore, after he leaves, Jian Yong, Guan Yu and other left-behind personnel only need to continue to implement the rules he set, follow the rules and do not increase or decrease operating techniques at will, in order to maintain the current situation.
But compared with this family fortune, Liu Bei's future is more important.
As long as Liu Bei can do well in Luoyang, the Liu family business will be ironclad and no one can touch it.
But if Liu Bei does not do well, or if his life is not saved, once he falls, then the Liu family's industry, even if it is made of iron, can be recast.
There was not enough time left for Liu Bei. He had to seek a higher political status and power for himself before everything settled.
Before the protective umbrella named Lu Zhi expires, he must obtain a certain amount of political power and protect himself.
After Liu Bei made his decision, he informed Gongsun Zan and Han Rong of his decision and itinerary, and received their care and support.
In addition to the thirty Liu knights led by Liu Bei himself, Gongsun Zan also asked five knights around him to follow Liu Bei to protect Liu Bei. Han Rong also arranged for ten county knights to protect Liu Bei.
At the same time, the two of them also provided Liu Bei with sufficient material support. Not counting the supplies that Liu Bei had prepared himself, the two of them also sent a lot of supplies.
Liu Bei was no stranger to the road from Zhuoxian to Luoyang. At that time, he took this road to Luoyang to apprentice with Lu Zhi, but this time he needed to bring his family, Han Ning and Han Xiaodie with him. Of course, we need to be a little more cautious than before.
The world of the Han Dynasty was unstable, roads were difficult to travel, and there was political division with the county as the country. Going out of the county was like going abroad. For ordinary people, it was infinitely closer to going to a funeral.
Even for places like Liu Bei, where the armed forces are powerful, traveling far away is equivalent to venturing into a strange underground city. Robbers and bandits may appear at any time and anywhere, which will rob them of wealth and sex.
The last time Liu Bei and his brother Liu Hui went south to Luoyang to study together, they encountered three bandits. Liu Hui, who was weak in force, turned pale with fright and hid in the car and shivered.
Liu Bei was okay. He drew his sword and fought with the guards, killing two bandits and saving the team.
This time, because he was bringing women with him, he needed to pay more attention to safety, so compared to the last time Liu Bei only brought ten people with him, this time there were a total of forty-five armed knights, all of whom had combat experience and were full of murderous intent.
In addition to Liu Bei's own thirty armed knights, the other fifteen are also good soldiers.
Not to mention the personal knights around Gongsun Zan who have been following Gongsun Zan for many years, as if they were stuck on the horse's back. They have superb riding skills and are good at riding and shooting. Let's just say that the ten county knights sent by Han Rong are not fuel-efficient lamps. .
As the prefect and the head of a county, Han Rong still has some private tribes to protect his own safety.
The total number of these people is about a hundred, and they are all good soldiers. They usually serve as personal guards, looking after homes and courtyards, nothing special. But if there is a war, they will be Han Rong's personal soldiers, and they will live and die with the general. The kind of death.
Moreover, Liu Bei has also been on the battlefield, and he can feel that these people have all been on the battlefield and killed people.
Of course, Liu Bei's guess was not wrong. Later Han Rong told him that he had been on the battlefield in his early years and had contributed to the Han-Qiang war. These people had all gone to the battlefield in Liangzhou and escaped unscathed.
This ability is really impressive. In the hundreds of years of Han-Qiang war, Liangzhou was like a meat grinder. To be able to survive this battlefield and get out unscathed is not an ordinary feat.
Therefore, Liu Bei has always been coveting these guards, but he had no chance or excuse before. This time, Han Rong took the initiative to send ten of them.
To put it harshly, this is called Roubaozi beating the dog and never coming back. Now that these ten people are here, will Liu Bei return them?
