Zhu Jingyuan gained a general understanding of the local situation in Edo through data and visits, and then began to think about what he should do during his two years in Edo.
If Zhu Jingyuan was an ordinary chief envoy and counselor, then what he should do and what he should manage were all directly arranged by the court and the chief envoy.
It is equivalent to the deputy position in charge of a less important matter within the Chief Envoy's Department, and there is a relatively important political participation in front of it.
If it is an ordinary prince, when he receives practical training in governance and reaches the level of counselor, the actual tasks will be very close to those of ordinary counselors.
I just want to study and understand all the work of the Chief Envoy Si Yamen while completing my job.
At the next stage, when you are training as a political participant, you can directly participate in all work and intervene in all affairs.
That is equivalent to the executive deputy position of the chief envoy, and he can cooperate with the chief envoy to directly preside over daily work.
But Zhu Jingyuan is no ordinary counselor, nor is he an ordinary prince.
Zhu Jingyuan trained in various places. In addition to studying like ordinary princes, more importantly, he led the pilot of the New Deal.
At the same time, Zhu Jingyuan also brought errands for the local governor.
No matter where Zhu Jingyuan was training, his actual task was to serve as an imperial envoy in the local area.
Not only will they not cooperate with local subjective opinions, they will also ask local supervisors to cooperate with them.
During the training in the Lion City, Zhu Jingyuan had already set up a simple work diversion method for himself.
The first is daily work, familiarizing with and learning the operating logic of the local yamen, and mastering the work processes of major key positions.
The second is response work, investigating the local situation, discovering local problems, solving problems and summing up experience, and proposing reform and preventive measures of a suggested nature.
For ordinary princes and grandsons who normally participate in political training, these first two items are all their work.
These are tasks that can be completed step by step.
For Zhu Jingyuan, this is just the basic work, and the more important things will come later.
The third is promotion work, to implement new policies that have been verified in other regions locally.
For example, the standard system for wage payment is based on the general education examination certificate.
The fourth is to supervise the work, supervise, supervise, and help local officials to better complete the new tasks assigned by the emperor and the court.
For now, the most important thing is the establishment of a government-run consortium that Zhu Jingyuan and Zhu Jianyan have just discussed.
The fifth is experimental work, using the local area as a pilot to test the new system planned by ourselves.
After careful consideration, Zhu Jingyuan thought that he could try to merge and execute the next two matters this time.
So, after three days of preparation, Zhu Jingyuan formally summoned the main officials of the Edo Governor's Yamen again.
After a simple greeting, Zhu Jingyuan got down to business directly:
"Has the notice from the imperial court regarding the establishment of government-owned manufacturers been issued?"
Chen Jian, the chief envoy of Edo, immediately handed over his hand and said:
"Your Highness, we have received the imperial court's request that yamen at all levels can organize the construction of government-run factories according to local conditions.
“The organization and preparation of manufacturers were completed by government offices at all levels. After their establishment, they were merged into the Daming Consortium established by the central court and became the consortium’s subordinate manufacturers in various places.
“Relevant manpower can be transferred directly from government offices at all levels, directly recruited from the private sector, or applied to consortiums.
"Formal management and operating personnel of manufacturers at the same level enjoy the treatment of officials at the same level."
Zhu Jingyuan nodded slowly after hearing this, and then asked about local affairs in Edo:
"So what industries are you planning to build in Edo?"
Chen Jian knew Zhu Jingyuan's mission, so he prepared the relevant information in advance and waited for Zhu Jingyuan's inquiry.
Now I explain my current situation very naturally:
“The most suitable industry for Edo, and indeed for the entire Japanese archipelago and the Korean Peninsula, is of course the shipbuilding and shipping business.
“However, shipbuilding and shipping both have obvious economies of scale and are more suitable for opening relatively high-level manufacturers.
“So, the current view of the Yamen is to set up shipyards at the level of the Chief Envoy and government-owned enterprises, and to set up shipping firms at the level of the Chief Envoy and even across the Chief Envoy.
“This may require His Highness’s coordination and application, so I hope His Highness can ask about it later.
“Then, for middle and lower-level yamen, except for a few places that already have corresponding industries and are suitable for participating in small-scale small ships and offshore shipping, not all are suitable for shipbuilding and shipping.
“After our investigation and research, we believe that the three basic industries of housing, schools, and hospitals are industries that can be opened by any government office at any level.
“Because no matter the city or the country, no matter who the target is, they all need houses and hospitals, and schools are related to the development direction of future generations.
“At the same time, the recently issued notice on improving and improving the living security of officials requires that government offices at all levels must build enough homes, hospitals, and schools for the children of officials.
"Cooperating with the development of related industries now can coincide with the implementation of relevant policies. This is also a suggestion given by the court.
"Finally, these key basic industries are also relatively easy to make profits, which can reduce risks."
Chen Jian's preparation was relatively well done, and Zhu Jingyuan didn't find any problems after listening.
However, Zhu Jingyuan has his own plans and requirements:
“I think there is no problem with these arrangements, but for government-owned manufacturers, the most important thing is not profit.
"This should have been mentioned in the documents issued by the imperial court, right?"
Chen Jian was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said:
“It was indeed mentioned that key basic industries such as houses, hospitals, and schools should be of a social security nature.
“So the government-owned consortium must take the lead in ensuring and maintaining the stability and balance of the corresponding market...”
Zhu Jingyuan nodded slightly again and reminded and added:
“The notice may be more official, but I think it’s better to be more straightforward.
“In fact, it is to let government-run consortiums at all levels cooperate with government agencies at all levels to turn these industries into unprofitable industries.
“The first is to control prices and lower profit margins, while also controlling private transactions and the number of household holdings.
“It would be best if private manufacturers cannot operate related industries, and let government-owned manufacturers specialize in operations without losing money.
“At the same time, we must maintain sufficient supply so that officials and people cannot have no place to live.
"Such a goal is difficult to achieve simply by relying on institutional and market regulation. Government-owned manufacturers must be directly involved."
Chen Jian and a group of officials listened to these requirements and were a little worried while understanding them.
Relevant personnel all know that it is easy for manufacturers such as real estate, hospitals, and schools to make money.
Even if we follow the requirements of the imperial court, the so-called ensuring supply and maintaining stability will not increase the difficulty.
Because government-run manufacturers will definitely be easier to operate than private manufacturers.
Therefore, the work of employees of government-owned manufacturers should be very easy. The key is that the regular employees there also receive official treatment.
Many officials are already making plans to get their relatives and friends to apply for the job, and they are also trying to help arrange them during the process of organizing manufacturers.
At the same time, as the court reminded, the existence of these government-run manufacturers can ensure that the treatment of normal officials such as themselves is guaranteed to be of high quality and quantity.
Therefore, for these two recent policies, most officials are full of joy and full of expectations and are fully promoting them.
But now I hear Prince Dashi’s intention is to let these government-owned manufacturers take the initiative to avoid making money.
How can factories and businesses exist and operate if they don't make money?
Ordinary private manufacturers must pursue profits and avoid losses.
Nowadays, the government-run manufacturers are required to neither make a loss nor make a profit.
The goal is to keep the factory as close to a break-even point as possible.
It feels like doing a financial budget.
In order to spend the income effectively, there must be neither a large-scale deficit nor a large-scale surplus.
These requirements don’t sound easy to do...
If you lose money, you will be punished, but if you make money, will you also be punished?
Chen Jian felt that this idea seemed wrong, and he suspected that he might have misunderstood it in some places.
Chen Jian secretly glanced at Zhu Jingyuan, recalled what he had learned about Zhu Jingyuan's personality and habits from his colleagues from other places, and boldly tried to actively consult:
"Your Highness, do you mean that we should run government-run manufacturers as departments of the government?"
Zhu Jingyuan nodded directly and said:
"That's right. These government-run manufacturers can actually be regarded as part of the government itself.
“It just involves business operations and financial and tax transactions, so we have to go out and run it independently.
"Therefore, the imperial court and the headquarters of the Daming Consortium will of course pay attention to and compile statistics on the profit margins, profit amounts and other data of government-owned manufacturers at all levels, but they will not use them as the main criteria for assessment.
“This is the biggest difference between government-owned manufacturers and private manufacturers.
“So I would like to remind you again that everyone should not treat government-owned manufacturers as manufacturers.
“Don’t worry about being punished by the consortium because you can’t make money.
“Relevant personnel should consider cooperating with government agencies at all levels to maintain social and market stability.
“Finally, the profitability of government-owned manufacturers also needs to be considered. If the manufacturer itself has no profitability at all, then it has no market competitiveness.
“It’s just that we don’t regard profit as the most important criterion like private manufacturers.
“Of course, you won’t be punished for making money.
“The profits earned by government-owned manufacturers in the market can be regarded as another form of tax.
"In addition to being used for the expansion of production by the government-run manufacturers themselves, more is directly handed over to the corresponding superior government offices."
After Zhu Jingyuan explained this, Chen Jian and other officials breathed a sigh of relief again.
According to such management standards, the work of these government-run manufacturers can still be considered relatively easy.
Not blindly pursuing profits means there is no pressure to make profits, and working with the yamen means that the business will be relatively simple and stable.
But at the same time, if profit is not the most important thing, there is another most important thing.
That is what both the imperial court and Zhu Jingyuan mentioned about cooperating with the imperial court to maintain social and market stability.
The employee evaluation standards of government-owned manufacturers can certainly only be formulated around these aspects.
This is really the same as working as a yamen errand. This so-called official salary is indeed not so free.
After Zhu Jingyuan explained the policy to the Edo officials headed by Chen Jian, he began to explain his pilot policy plan:
"In the process of organizing and opening government-run manufacturers, I hope that Edo government offices at all levels and corresponding manufacturers will cooperate with each other to carry out a pilot project of a new policy."
Chen Jian was already prepared for this, and he immediately agreed after hearing this:
"Your Highness, you can make arrangements, and we will fully cooperate."
Zhu Jingyuan raised his hand to signal, and the secretary beside him handed a document handwritten by Zhu Jingyuan to Chen Jian.
Zhu Jingyuan briefly explained and introduced beside him:
“This new policy is the ticket system. When purchasing certain goods, special tickets and certificates are required.
“Relevant bills and certificates must be issued by special agencies established by the imperial court in accordance with rules that are not directly related to money.
"It is said to be a new policy, but it cannot be considered brand new. It was already used during the Renwu Dynasty.
“It’s just that Emperor Shizu’s situation at that time was completely different from the current situation.
“The same ticket system should have completely different effects then and now.
"The reason why Emperor Shizu used banknotes was that the treasure banknotes at that time had completely lost their value, and the gold and silver were not enough for use.
“Coupled with the extraordinary social turmoil, food, a daily necessity, has become an approximate general equivalent.
“So Emperor Shizu introduced food stamps that could be directly exchanged for grain and used as temporary new banknotes.
“After society stabilized and food production became abundant, the vouchers for food exchange were gradually abolished.
“When resources are scarce, the essence of tickets is to limit purchases and ensure the most basic fairness of resource allocation.
“Now we have relatively abundant resources, but they are far from enough to allow the rich to waste them at will.
“I started the ticket system in this case because I wanted to see if I could use the ticket system to control and balance the supply and demand relationship in a specific market. The ultimate goal is to avoid excessive concentration and waste of living infrastructure and resources.
“So these tickets are still all for specific living infrastructure.
“The first is the room ticket corresponding to the house.
“My current plan is to divide room tickets into three categories: men’s, women’s, and families, and there may be two or three different levels.
“Men’s and women’s tickets are used to purchase single-room dormitories and apartments. Except for the separation of men and women, other regulations and standards can be exactly the same, and they can be collectively referred to as single tickets.
“A single ticket can only purchase a single apartment, and the maximum area must not exceed 40 square meters.
"Then, a male ticket, a female ticket, or two apartment ownership certificates, together with a marriage certificate, can be exchanged for a family ticket. This exchange point can be placed directly at the marriage registration office.
“Family tickets can be used to purchase a complete family home with more than two rooms.
“The area corresponding to the redeemed family ticket cannot be less than the sum of the house areas corresponding to the two single tickets.
“My long-term goal for the future is to fully government-run the housing industry.
“The imperial court issued regulations that purchase tickets must be used to purchase houses.
“Everyone can get a room ticket when they reach adulthood, and at the same time, without special contribution, they can only get a room ticket that controls the area and size at most.
“In the end, ordinary single tickets were fixed at 40 square meters, and family tickets started from 120 square meters.
“In addition to two tickets for men and women plus a marriage certificate in exchange for a family ticket, it should also be possible to exchange a family ticket plus a birth registration certificate for a family ticket with a larger area and more rooms.
“Of course, by that time, simply adding money can also be used to exchange for a larger house ticket, but it cannot buy a larger number of independent houses.
“Unless there are special contributions recognized by the court, ordinary people cannot own more than two houses at the same time.
“At that time, everyone will need to use the ticket to buy a house, but at the same time, everyone will also have the ticket.
“Then the house builders can directly build houses according to the number of tickets issued.
“In this way, the final number of houses built will not exceed the actual demand by too much, and the proportion of waste and idleness can be reduced.
“At the same time, the imperial court, government agencies at all levels, and government-run consortium housing construction manufacturers at all levels should cooperate to control market prices.
“Control the market price of the lowest-sized family house to no more than five years’ wages of an ordinary worker.
“Turn the housing industry into a real social basic industry.
“Of course, this is just an ideal theoretical goal, and various problems will certainly be encountered during implementation.
“So before large-scale application, we must first conduct social pilots.
“I hope you can cooperate with me to complete the details of these plans, solve various problems during the pilot process, and complete this pilot in Edo.
"If this pilot can be successful and its practical feasibility can be verified, it will be considered a great achievement."
(End of chapter)
