Wang Xiaolie sat on his seat and closed his eyes slightly. On the case were piles of documents compiled by the officials in the past few days.
The documents include previous state and county regulations, the actual system implemented, packages for cities, towns, ferries, etc., etc. There are also carefully sorted out the tax amounts of various exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes, the actual amounts collected, and the actual burdens of the people in various cities and countryside. In addition, how many main households, how many customers, how many status households there are in Ruzhou, and how many fifth-class households there are. How much do different households actually bear?
The place is not big, but the contents are diverse and have many names. Sorting it out is really a big project. More complex things are yet to come. Exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes must be reduced, and many items must be eliminated. But how much tax should be reduced, which items should be reduced, and how the amount should be reduced must be carefully considered. There are all kinds of officials, public servants, and servants, as well as all kinds of leaders, supervisors, and magistrates, as well as douzi, weizi, pickers, treasurers, etc., which ones should be saved and which ones should not be saved. All must be considered.
It must be understood that the government must have manpower to manage a place. These manpower must be supported by local people, and there is no doubt about it. What Wang Xiaolie wants to do is to reduce manpower to a minimum and reduce the burden on the people as much as possible. At the same time, we must also crack down on local powerful people. As the people's income increased, the government's income also increased. These things are all complicated.
What has always troubled Wang Xiaolie is actually a theoretical issue.
What we learned in previous lives is that human society is moving forward. Primitive society, slave society, feudal society, capitalist society, all the way to socialist society and communist society. What happens after that? I don’t know after that.
Frankly speaking, this method of dividing human society into stages is based on the historical analysis of Europe, especially Western Europe. Other parts of the world are hard to get caught up in. It is difficult to say whether capitalist society is stronger than feudal society or whether Western Europe is stronger just because Western Europe is classified as capitalist. A higher social stage is better than a lower stage? Song, who had suffered defeat after defeat, and Jin, who had just emerged from primitive society, obviously disagreed. Liberating and developing productive forces cannot be so simple.
Things in China still depend on China’s history and facts. The process of establishing New China taught Wang Xiaolie not those social stages, but several important theories.
Historical materialism, in other words, means that the people are the masters of history. Similarly, in New China, the people are the masters of the country. Regardless of history or reality, standing on the side of the people means standing on the side of victory. It's just that for most of the period in China, the people were actively or passively absent. When the people stand up and unite as one, they truly influence history.
This theory is not unusual in Chinese culture. According to Mencius, the people are the most important, the king is the most important, and the country is the second most important. Paying attention to the people and exploring the power of the people are important ideas in Chinese culture.
This idea is very important. Europe's literary and artistic revolution and ideological enlightenment also began with the recognition of the importance of the people. Whether it is natural human rights, freedom, equality, fraternity, or parliamentary and vote-based politics, we must realize step by step that ordinary people are the masters of political power.
If before this, human political power was theoretically a chain, after the people came to the political stage, the political chain began to slowly close into a circle.
As for the political chain, Europe has the divine right of kings, and China has the mandate from heaven. The emperor and monarch received their right to rule from heaven or the gods, and then there were appointed officials, or feudal lords, to rule the entire country. From divine or destiny to the people at the lowest level, it is passed down layer by layer, like a chain. The emperor or emperor, as well as officials at all levels and feudal lords, were at various positions in this chain of rule. The heaven or god at the top has nothing to do with ordinary people.
Such an open political chain determines the political system. No matter how it is packaged and what theory is used to explain this political system, it cannot change this system of layer upon layer suppression and layer upon layer enfeoffment. It's just that in different systems, the status of destiny or gods is different, and the status of emperors, officials and lords facing destiny or gods is different. The people at the bottom basically have no political power.
As the people at the lowest level are gradually integrated into politics, destiny or God is slowly removed from politics. The original position of destiny or God was replaced by the people. Western parliamentary and ballot politics, in theory, make the people the masters of the country. Similarly, when the Soviet Union and China later adopted the congress system, they also replaced the original destiny or God with the people.
The biggest difference between the modern political system and previous political systems is the change from an open political chain to a closed political circle. As for the specific system to be implemented, it is actually not that important. Differences in ideology and political system are more likely to be differences between allies and hostile forces.
The more different the political system is from the open political chain and the closer it is to the closed political circle, the more advanced the political system will be. The impact of class solidification and wealth differentiation on the country should be analyzed from this aspect.
In Wang Xiaolie's previous life, most countries, most politicians and theorists did not have a clear understanding of this. Most people conduct various analyzes in terms of ideology, political system, and economic management. In fact, these analyzes have no theoretical basis. They can only be analyzed from the perspective of productivity, people's living standards, the country's military strength, and so on.
The people are the masters of history, the people are the masters of the country, the people are the masters of the country, and the government must serve the people. These words sound very simple and familiar. But when it comes to real analysis, they are all very knowledgeable. There are very few people who can truly understand it clearly.
In his previous life, Wang Xiaolie actually learned only a few pieces of political knowledge. The first is that in the country and society, the people are the masters. Destiny or God has gone forever, and the people, as the masters, have closed the political chain into a political circle. The second society is developing, and in order to adapt to the continuously developing society, politics should be constantly reformed. Other than that, not too important.
What troubles Wang Xiaolie is that the people are the masters, but who are the people? Are farmers, workers, or intellectuals? Capitalist? Officials, right? Soldier, right? Even inmates in prison, right? A beggar on the street?
The people are the masters. But how does the state know the opinions of the people? How to make the people the masters of the country? Even if it is clear who the people are, do the words they say and the things they do truly represent their inner opinions? Even if they represent inner opinions, are these opinions correct? What should I do if I think it is correct now, but one year later, ten years later, or even longer, I find out that I am wrong?
If you ask people, many people can talk at length about these issues, express countless opinions, and put forward countless opinions. But to be honest, most of them are basically useless. These simple questions involve all aspects of society and are actually university questions.
In the development process of Chinese Confucianism, two people under Confucius were very important. One is Mencius and the other is Xunzi. There is a very famous difference in their thoughts. One believes that human nature is good, and the other believes that human nature is evil.
Before the Song Dynasty, Xunzi's status was higher than that of Mencius. After the Song Dynasty, in turn, Mencius had a higher status than Xunzi.
Why? Is it because some scholars have lost their minds and the court has also lost their minds? Or are there profound social reasons? Wang Xiaolie couldn't tell clearly because he had never seen any research on this in his previous life.
Whether human nature is good or evil is directly related to the political system and social governance. Whether it is a country or a society, they are all composed of people. The understanding of people determines the political system and social governance.
In economics, people who participate in economic activities are often regarded as rational people, who are self-interested and rational. This assumption is also about people's understanding, which leads to various theories.
The understanding of people, such as the belief that people are free, self-interested, and have natural human rights. Such understanding directly produces corresponding theories, corresponding political systems, and corresponding social governance methods. In other words, the understanding of people is the basis for the study of the entire country and society. Different political ideas arise from what kind of person you think people are and what kind of person they should be.
Change another perspective, step out from what people are like, and re-understand the country and society.
The core of Confucius' thought is "benevolence". He also said, "My way is consistent, it's just loyalty and forgiveness." It can be seen from this that Confucius’ thoughts are actually relatively clear. It means taking "I" as an existence and other people, country, society, etc. as an existence, and how to deal with the relationship between them. The most important thing is loyalty and forgiveness. Be loyal to others, country, society, clan, family, etc. For yourself, the requirement is forgiveness.
Mencius's thoughts are relatively complex and somewhat confusing. He proposed "righteousness". But what exactly righteousness is is actually not very clear. People in later generations were even more confused. They often mentioned benevolence and righteousness at the same time, losing their specific meaning.
There are monism and dualism in understanding people. Dualism is very simple. It believes that people are natural people with natural nature, and at the same time, people are also social people with social dispositions. National systems and social governance are based on people's social nature, but they also take into account natural nature. Monism believes that human beings are unitary in society, and nature itself is also a part of society. There is no need to consider nature in the governance of people.
In Wang Xiaolie's view, people are people, and there is no such thing as monism or dualism. The difference between one yuan and two is just that people have different understandings of society, nature, etc. Study human beings with the eyes of a knower. No matter how you divide it, people are still there, and they are still the same.
In other words, what human nature is and what people are like are actually not that important.
People are like this or that. How to recognize them is a matter for the person who knows them. But the difference between one person and two people is not the simple sum of two people. Because two people are together, they have a mutual relationship, entangled interests, and their common characteristics. This common characteristic is newly born. It is related to two people and has its own independence.
All studies and theories on human beings, family relationships, clan management, and national systems must take this common feature into consideration. Moreover, we must distinguish this common characteristic from others, clearly understand it, and manage it carefully.
Simply put, the study of people and all theories about people must clearly understand the difference between collective and individual. This is not only to emphasize the difference between individualism and collectivism, and the differences between personal interests and collective interests, but also to single out the collective and manage it separately.
This question is a bit convoluted, and many people will think it is nonsense and think they understand. I don’t actually understand.
In Taoist terms, one gives birth to two, and two gives birth to three. What is that three? Three is not derived from two. It's that two individuals of two are connected and in contact, and their totality is that three. In terms of set theory, it is a collection. There may be intersections and others in this collection, but it has its own properties.
Once you understand this, you will also understand that the people are the masters of the country, but we cannot simply think that the people have the final say in matters. Even if everyone in the country is included, the decision cannot be made by these individuals, let alone by a simple vote where the minority obeys the majority. Managers have to face not only individual individuals, but also the whole composed of individuals.
Who are the people? The people are not just composed of people from the country, not just workers, farmers, businessmen, capitalists, intellectuals, not just officials, soldiers, students, etc., but also the whole.
Many times, people think that the whole is nothing, just a kind of understanding and a means. Not really. That whole entity truly exists and has its own interests, understanding, and needs.
Once you realize this, you can break away from analyzing what is a person and what is human nature. There is a new perspective on politics and society. The analysis of politics, society, and economy is no longer vague, but can have a clear understanding.
If you traveled a thousand years and came to ancient China, what would you do to avoid falling behind in history and make China stand at the top of human civilization? Without a clear theoretical understanding, it is actually not enough to just rely on historical memory to change certain historical nodes. Now that the Jin people have been defeated, there are still more powerful Mongols behind them. As for simply copying Western European systems and practices, the same cannot be said. Not to mention that one does not know enough about Western Europe, what is the Russia that has been copied throughout history?
It should be acknowledged that every civilization on earth and the culture of different groups of people have their own characteristics. It's no accident that they are like that. It should also be acknowledged that this difference and the pace of human progress should be different. It is incorrect to think that people are the same and human society should also be the same. Human development is inherently colorful.
It is a kind of prejudice to think that oneself is civilized and others are barbaric and backward. Thinking that others should be like you is even more arrogant. West Asia and Europe have their own special circumstances and a kind of missionary complex, which is inherently incorrect.
Human civilization has assimilation. Assimilation is conditional and takes time. Forced assimilation is inherently incorrect.
What confuses Wang Xiaolie is that the China he lived in in his previous life had too many external factors to emerge from humiliation and backwardness. However, there is insufficient research on China’s own civilization and culture. Wang Xiaolie didn't actually know what he wanted China to be like when he came into this world. What he wants to do and the system he designs must be explored by himself.
That's how people are. As long as there is a reference to something, you think you understand it. Many people think that foreigners are richer and more powerful than us, so of course we have to do whatever they want. Foreigners have strong ships and powerful guns, and the country is rich and the people are strong. They have such a political system, and we should do the same. Even food and clothing must be the same.
How can you do it if you copy others without thinking of your own? Are there any similar countries in the world? Likewise, no family is exactly the same. Human society has commonalities and also has its own particularities. Emphasize your own particularities, but don’t forget the commonalities of mankind.
People are simple, society is complex, and countries are even more complex. It is difficult for simple people to understand clearly. How can a more complex society and country be explained simply and clearly? Only by recognizing the complexity can we truly find a good path.
