Su Jing's words directly caused Zhu Biao's body movements to stop.
The three of them just watched helplessly as the two new beggars took away the coins that Su Jing had given to the two beggars, an old man and a young man.
"Niu Su, buy some steamed buns and send them over. Remember, put down the steamed buns and leave immediately. Don't linger."
Su Jing took out a few coins and handed them to Zhu Zhu, and gave instructions.
"knew."
Zhu Xi took the copper plate and ran towards the steamed bun shop at the other end of the street.
"Master Su, why don't you let the students come forward?"
Zhu Biao asked Su Jing, he really couldn't figure it out.
The two beggars, one old and one young, were obviously more pitiful.
And those two beggars who took away other people's belongings from their bowls were simply robbers.
Su Jing looked at Zhu Biao and said calmly: "Niu Yi, do you think it's easy to get rid of just two beggars?"
"Is not it?"
Zhu Biao frowned, his doubts not relieved.
Su Jing sighed slightly, but did not blame Zhu Biao. After all, he was a child of a wealthy family and did not know the survival rules of the lower class people.
"There are a lot of beggars in Lishui County. If I give coins to those old and young people, they will only be robbed."
Su Jing said to Zhu Biao: "But if it is a piece of silver, it will only attract the jealousy of more people. Not even just beggars."
"Similarly, if you really came forward just now, unless you killed those two guys, if you think they have grievances, who would you seek revenge on?"
This is the current situation at the bottom. Even if they are all beggars, they will be divided into different grades.
Zhu Biao's face showed surprise, and he looked at Su Jing and said: "Master Su, there are only a few beggars in total, why are they like this?"
He couldn't understand why they were so at odds with each other when they were both beggars.
Su Jing said lightly: "Why? Because of human nature. This has been like this for many years."
Zhu Biao was silent for a while and said to Su Jing: "Master Su, can't we just help these beggars?"
"There are only a few of them anyway. With Master Su's ability, it shouldn't be difficult."
In terms of kindness, Zhu Biao still has a kind heart.
"It's not impossible, but what if I see other beggars again? Will you still help?"
Su Jing said with a smile.
Helping two beggars was not difficult for him, and he didn't mind.
But Su Jing knew Zhu Biao, and his thoughts should not only be about helping two beggars.
Zhu Biao said matter-of-factly: "Of course you should help if you see one. There are only a few beggars in a county, it's just a small matter."
"Only a few?"
Su Jing raised her eyebrows slightly and asked Zhu Biao, "How many beggars do you think there are in Lishui County?"
Zhu Biao thought for a while and recalled how many beggars he had seen during his life in Lishui County.
"Maybe dozens of them?"
Zhu Biao said uncertainly, he did not dare to say any more.
After all, it is impossible for Zhu Biao to pay attention to the statistics of this kind of thing one by one.
"Okay, let's do one thing tomorrow, and make a good count of the number of beggars in Lishui County."
Su Jing didn't talk about data to Zhu Biao in vain. Without actual investigation, everything was empty.
"Yes, Master Su."
Zhu Biao nodded without any objection.
At this time, Zhu Rui had already walked towards the two beggars with the steamed buns in hand.
It's not a white steamed bun, but a slightly yellow steamed bun.
Pure white flour steamed buns are refined grains.
The two beggars, an old man and a young man, immediately expressed their gratitude to Zhu Ji, but Zhu Ji didn't stay too long and ran away quickly.
He still remembered Su Jing's warning.
After all, Zhu Rui is only a six-year-old child. This kind of thing needs to be done quickly.
Early the next morning.
Su Jing took Zhu Biao out. It was cold in late autumn, and it was especially cold in the morning because of the strong moisture.
But the beggars on the street had already appeared early.
Most of them are concentrated not far from the breakfast vendors, because this is where stutterers are most likely to mix in.
Su Jing and Zhu Biao worked separately, each responsible for several streets, recording the data on the appearance of beggars.
Have some pancakes at noon and continue to record.
It wasn't until evening that Su Jing and Zhu Biao came together.
"How about it, Niu Yi, how many did you record?"
Su Jing asked Zhu Biao.
Zhu Biao replied: "73."
In fact, he himself couldn't believe why there were so many beggars.
Su Jing said: "I counted 84."
In other words, the two of them counted more than 150 beggars in one day.
"It's a lot, isn't it? The two of us must not have counted everything. Lishui County is so big, there are still many places that we haven't reached yet."
Su Jing said to Zhu Biao.
"That's true, Master Su."
Zhu Biao nodded.
He really didn't expect that there would be so many beggars in Lishui County, which was so prosperous under the Ming Dynasty.
Su Jing said lightly: "Actually, this is quite small. You know the beggar household system in our Ming Dynasty."
"Of course I know, Master Su."
Zhu Biao replied: "Whether they are blind people or lusty people, they are all untouchables, even worse than beggars."
According to Zhu Biao, this racial hierarchy is extremely natural and completely taken for granted.
Su Jing didn't think there was anything wrong, because even in her previous life, racial discrimination was a major problem worldwide.
Moreover, the situation of the Ming Dynasty was very special. During the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols, as the rulers, divided the people under their rule into four classes.
The first-class people are Mongolians, the second-class people are Semu people, the third-class people are Han Chinese from the northern region, and the fourth-class people are Han Chinese from the southern region.
Such unfair treatment would naturally arouse resistance from the Han people in the south. However, due to the overwhelming power of the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty, the Han people dared to be angry but did not dare to speak out.
Until the peasant uprising at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang and other rebellious princes overthrew the rule of the Yuan Dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang unified China and the Ming Dynasty was officially established.
Lao Zhu naturally also implemented a racial hierarchy policy, but the hierarchy was exactly the opposite of that of the Yuan Dynasty.
The Han people have the highest status. The Semu people and the Mongolian people are untouchables and are designated as "beggar households", which means people who are worse than beggars.
Needless to say, the status of beggars is almost the same as that of slaves, with no human rights at all.
"Our Lishui County is not far away from the rule of Yingtian Mansion, and there are not many beggar households. Therefore, the beggars here are basically ordinary people who can't live in poverty."
Su Jing said: "If we move to another place far away, there will still be many meng and semu people, and there will be many beggars."
"Moreover, there are few counties in the entire Ming Dynasty that can compare with Lishui County."
"In other words, in fact, many people in Ming Dynasty still have no food to eat, and people's lives are still difficult."
The vast majority of people under the feudal dynasty lived in poverty most of the time.
When Zhu Biao heard this, his expression darkened.
Thinking about what Su Jing said.
The living standards of the people in Lishui County are already very high, which can be considered quite comfortable in the Ming Dynasty.
But there are still many beggars and many people who cannot even guarantee their survival.
Such a Ming Dynasty is far from what Zhu Biao imagined.
People should live and work in peace and contentment.
"Master Su, why is this happening?"
Zhu Biao looked at Su Jing and said: "Obviously the amount of land in the Ming Dynasty is enough to support these people, and there should be no conflict between man and land."
"And today's Ming Dynasty also encourages land reclamation and farming. As long as you are willing to work, it should not be like this."
Needless to say, Zhu Biao has thought deeply about the topic of the contradiction between man and land.
The current Ming Dynasty has just experienced many wars, and the population of the entire land is actually in a state of sharp decline.
After all, it had only been two years since the Ming Dynasty was officially established. It would take at least ten years for a child to be able to survive on his own from birth.
In other words, it will take at least ten years, under the policy of recuperation and recuperation, for the population of Ming Dynasty to increase significantly.
This is also the reason why Zhu Yuanzhang set the age at which men can get married at 16 years old.
Only by getting married and having children as early as possible can the number of people in the Ming Dynasty increase even more. Population is labor, and labor is national strength.
Very realistic, but it is what it is.
Therefore, in Zhu Biao's view, there is no such problem as the contradiction between man and earth in the current Ming Dynasty.
Because the population is too small and there is a lot of land, it must be divided.
“This is not a conflict between man and land, this is a poverty trap.”
Su Jing said lightly.
A trap for low-income earners?
Zhu Biao looked at Su Jing with some surprise and said: "Students don't understand, please ask Master Su to teach you."
Su Jing said: "Actually, the reason is very simple, because they are originally poor and have nothing, not even the most basic productivity tools."
"The Ming Dynasty does encourage land reclamation, but land reclamation requires farm tools, which they don't have."
"Opening up wasteland also requires physical labor. Before, they didn't have enough food, clothing, warmth, or a place to live. How could they have extra energy to work?"
"Whether it's farm tools or physical strength, these are initial investments, and the food grown is the return."
"The so-called poverty trap is that because of poverty, investment returns cannot be paid. Without returns, people will naturally become poorer, and thus fall into the trap of the poor getting poorer."
After hearing Su Jing's words, Zhu Biao immediately said: "Then they can borrow it."
"As long as we get through the initial difficulties and wait until the food is harvested, everything will be fine."
Su Jing shook her head and said: "Who would lend their property to beggars? Beggars don't have any assets, and the poverty of their lives makes them physically weak."
"If we describe it as an asset, the beggar itself is a non-performing asset with high liabilities. No smart investor will choose such a non-performing asset for investment."
After hearing this, Zhu Biao fell silent.
He understood that these beggars were already trapped in a vicious cycle.
If you don’t have money for upfront investment, there will be no return. Without return, you will only have more money.
If this continues, being a beggar will just last a while, with no possibility of turning around.
It's really a "trap".
"Master Su, can you help them?"
Zhu Biao looked at Su Jing with hopeful eyes.
Su Jing's business wisdom is the most powerful Zhu Biao has ever seen. When he was describing it just now, he also used assets to describe it.
So, does Su Jing already have a solution?
Zhu Biao was looking forward to it.
"Did you mean to help one, or to help everyone?"
Su Jing asked calmly.
Zhu Biao was stunned, and after a moment of silence he said, "Of course students want to help everyone."
He is the prince and the future emperor of Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Biao's wish must be that there will be no beggars in the entire Ming Dynasty, and the people's lives will be extremely beautiful.
"Then I can't do it."
Su Jing shook her head and said: "With my ability, the most I can do is to help them. This only covers the beggars I can see. I'm afraid I won't be able to help all the beggars in Lishui County."
Su Jing is indeed quite rich, but he is not a welfare institution.
Relieving beggars is not as simple as imagined.
Zhu Biao's wishes are good, but Su Jing's abilities are limited.
Zhu Biao was silent. He had already expected this answer, but he still had some expectations in his heart.
"Master Su, is there really no other way?"
Zhu Biao looked at Su Jing and pleaded again.
Su Jing looked at Zhu Biao's sincere eyes, thought about it for a moment, and said, "There is no other way. It can only be said that this is a long-term task, at least it cannot be completed overnight."
"Master Su, please speak."
Zhu Biao immediately said seriously.
Su Jing paused and said: "This problem of beggars is actually a problem of poverty. How to get these beggars out of trouble is to get them out of poverty. Niu Yi, you can understand this."
Zhu Biao nodded and said, "Students can understand."
Su Jing continued: "First of all, we must be sure that poverty is an inevitable problem in a large country. This is inevitable."
"The distribution of social wealth must be unfair. The larger the country, the more obvious the gap caused by this unfairness."
“So, if we want to eliminate poverty, we must have a secondary distribution function of social wealth.”
"For example, disaster relief is actually a secondary distribution of social wealth. Wealth collected from society is used to subsidize and relieve people who have been affected by disasters and fell into poverty."
"Therefore, how to correctly carry out the secondary distribution of social wealth is of great significance to the eradication of poverty."
Hearing this, Zhu Biao suddenly said: "Su Jing, do you mean to directly provide relief to these poor people like disaster relief?"
The most simple and direct way to provide disaster relief is to distribute food.
"No no no!"
Su Jing immediately shook her head and said: "This method is not feasible."
In the beautiful country of Su Jing's previous life, this was the method of alleviating poverty, directly giving money to the poor.
But the actual poverty alleviation effect is not good.
The method of directly distributing money ultimately creates a large number of lazy people.
Besides, Ming Dynasty didn’t have that much food.
Natural and man-made disasters, internal and external troubles, food is too expensive.
Disaster relief is largely due to the need to maintain the stability of the disaster-stricken areas. Otherwise, if a large number of people have no food to eat, they will riot.
(End of chapter)
