Chapter 43: New Jingjiang’s Plan
He Xi said: "You just said that you asked the local indigenous people? Have you dealt with the local indigenous people?"
Zhan Ding said: "We have fought. I think the indigenous people on this island can be divided into two types. One is the barbarians, who do not understand Chinese at all. They cannot translate well. They are also cannibals. There are even legends that these barbarians, for A grown man who boasts about his bravery must cut off a human head and come back. He is simply a beast."
"These people will be killed on sight. There is no need to hold back."
"The other type is the mature barbarians. In fact, I saw many Han people among these mature barbarian tribes. In the early years of Hongwu's migration, I don't know who is at fault?"
He Xi knew it, although Zhan Ding didn't say it explicitly. But He Xi still heard his hint.
He hinted that Hongwu wanted to move the people back to the mainland in the early years, but some people were unwilling to go back. Instead, they ran into the mountains, mixed with these familiar barbarians, and became members of the familiar barbarian tribes. Speaking of which, this can probably be regarded as an example of tyranny being fiercer than a tiger.
In order to escape the harsh rule of the court. Some people would rather not be Han Chinese anymore. Escape into the mountains and become a savage.
Of course, there may be other possibilities for these barbarians to rob the Han people.
No matter what the reason is, when it comes to historical issues, it is better to be broad rather than detailed. There's a lot to look forward to.
At least the result is good. These familiarities can be communicated. Whether speaking Chinese or through a translator. This is ready-made manpower.
He Xi said with great interest: "How many indigenous people are there on the island?"
Zhan Ding said: "It's hard to say here. No one has ever counted it. But I estimate that one hundred thousand is not bad. I'm talking about the whole island."
At this time, most Taiwanese indigenous people were still in a primitive society and did not even have agriculture at all. They all gather and hunt to obtain food. So the population density is very low.
However, Zhan Ding still overgeneralized. As the Han people lived on the island, the indigenous people on the island were actually undergoing profound changes. They moved from a primitive society to a farming society step by step. Even in the late Ming Dynasty, there was a Dadu Kingdom with a population of hundreds of thousands on the island.
From the perspective of social structure, it is already on the threshold of the feudal dynasty. It's just that they never get the chance to go any further.
During this period, the island's population was actually growing slowly and continuously. It's not just a hundred thousand.
He Xi was a little disappointed. He originally wanted to use a large number of indigenous people to fill the labor gap. Just like the state of Wu during the Three Kingdoms period, it conquered Shanyue several times and placed Shanyue at the foot of the mountain to replenish the population of the state of Wu. But only 100,000 people. Some are too few.
He thought to himself: "It seems that I have to find a way. If Jingjiang Domain wants to develop based on food production, it will probably take ten years. This time is too long."
The reason why He Xi was so concerned about Jingjiang Fan was, on the one hand, because Jingjiang Fan was the beginning of He Xi's overseas feudal plan.
Whether this can be done well will mean whether the subsequent things can proceed smoothly.
On the other hand, it is to serve as an overseas trading center. Jingjiang Fan should also have the most basic functions, such as a place for sailors to spend money. At least we can supply food.
Therefore, He Xi racked his brains to think about the development plan of Jingjiang Fan.
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"Jingjiang Fan wants to develop rapidly. Farming and farming are of course the foundation. But the most important thing is to do the following things well." He Xi said: "First of all, rely on mountains to eat mountains, rely on water to eat water, and rely on trees to eat trees. Yes. What I'm talking about is logging. I know the market situation in mainland China. I think the average size of large trees here is at least seven taels per tree in Jiangnan. If they are bigger and thicker, they are more valuable. The largest trees are worth a hundred taels in Jiangnan. It’s also possible to sell it.”
Trees cost more for every size they get. Moreover, this price increase is not a gradual increase. to a certain specification. Just a few taels away.
This is also related to the purpose of trees.
In He Xi's view, the Ming Dynasty, no, ancient Chinese society, was better said to be a wood society than an iron society.
This kind of big wood is most useful for building houses. rafters. This requires that the size of the beams be larger, and the house will be larger. Even the emperor needed big wood to build his house. The golden nanmu pillars in the Emperor's Palace are priceless. It can't even be measured in terms of money. During the Yongle period, Beijing was built for this golden nanmu. Several roads were forcibly built in the mountains of Guizhou. Just to transport wood.
Next, build ships.
In fact, in ancient thinking, a ship is a house floating on the sea. Large wood is used more often.
The large trees in the southeastern region have been almost exhausted. Most of the rest are in deep mountains and old forests, and the cost is no longer high. Faced with such a price. Taiwan, which almost protects wood that costs money, has the greatest competitive advantage.
Although, wood here is almost free. But transporting from here to Fujian, Zhejiang, or Jiangnan costs money. There are still some costs. Anyway, I made some money.
"If possible." He Xi continued, "Actually, you can build a dock directly here. Build ships. Selling the ships directly is more profitable than selling wood."
It was also because He Xi had been thinking about the boat that she could react quickly to this matter. After all, most people don't pay attention to the price of wood.
To be honest, King Jingjiang has been going crazy these days.
Because the situation here is not generally bad.
Although it is said that King Jingjiang was not welcomed by Zhu Yuanzhang, he once went to Fengyang to be imprisoned. But the prince is the prince, and no matter what time it is, his treatment has not been reduced much. Fine clothes and fine food are indispensable. But here, it is impossible to maintain his luxurious life.
He did many things himself.
This made him very angry. I felt that I was deceived by He Xi.
In fact, he can still endure these small pains. The thing he is determined not to endure is the invisible future. Here, he didn't believe at all the pie that He Xi had drawn for him. It would take several generations to develop such a wild world.
He, Zhu Shouqian, has been working hard for future generations all his life?
He is not that noble.
Fortunately, He Xi's words finally made him think more rationally.
He never expected that big trees could be seen everywhere now. can become a source of wealth. There is no need to think about a hundred taels or even a few hundred taels of wood. Such big trees are difficult to cut down. But that kind of wood can be seen almost everywhere here.
Enough torment.
Moreover, this is also waste utilization. Needless to say anything else. It’s just about reclaiming farmland. Cutting down trees is also necessary. It can be said that it is a benefit without any cost.
What was more interesting was Lu Zhongheng.
The Lord Lu asked with great interest: "Is there any other business?"
He Xi said: "There is also this." As he spoke, He Xi picked up a piece of venison with chopsticks and said.
Lu Zhongheng said: "Yes, venison is not cheap in the Central Plains."
Venison has always been a delicacy. During the Spring and Autumn Period, nobles generally ate venison. There is even an allusion about Qin losing its deer. Why not say, Qin lost its pigs and its rabbits. It’s deer, because deer represents delicious food, among many other things.
It’s just that deer is so delicious. Become one of the creatures that were eaten to extinction. There have been no wild deer in the Central Plains for a long time. Therefore, venison is very expensive in the Central Plains.
He Xi said: "Venison is good, but the real bulk is deer skin. As far as I know, there are a large number of deer on the island, which is another source of income."
Whether venison tastes good or not is another question. The most important reason is that venison is not easy to store. Not to mention long-term storage. Therefore, He Xi paid more attention to the deerskin trade.
This can be regarded as He Xi taking advantage of the Dutch. When the Dutch were in Taiwan, the most important trade was the deerskin trade. Deerskin has many uses. Among other things, the gloves and tools used by hidden weapon masters in martial arts when using poison-quenching hidden weapons are usually made of deerskin. Can be used to prevent viruses.
Deerskin is very popular because of its inherent properties. Moreover, there are a lot of deer skins. At least the Dutch deer skin trade has been going on for decades, but they have not completely wiped out the deer skins in Taiwan.
Lu Zhongheng was amazed in his heart, and felt that he was right to follow He Xi. He Xi not only has the emperor's favor, but also has the means to make money. This desert island overseas can make money and water, this is a real skill.
