All Hail Cousin Brother

Huang Wenwen hurriedly said: "Huang is a junior general in His Highness's army, so the courtesy cannot be discarded."

Besides, is that the princess he is kneeling on?

She is clearly the future little princess!

Military advisors have titles but no real power, but they all have fame and honor, and have the privilege of not kneeling before officials. After Huang Wenwen saw her, he could directly bow his hands and bow as a scholar, but he didn't have to act like a military general.

Yu Youyao has always respected me as much as I respect others: "Senior Huang is a veteran in the army. He has assisted King Ding and King Wu Mu in guarding the northern border for many years. He has worked hard and made great achievements. He is the person in charge of Prince Wu Mu's palace, so naturally he is also mine. Take your seat."

Huang Wenwen was also a happy person. Seeing that she did not pretend to be the princess, he breathed a sigh of relief: "If you are brave enough to trust someone, it is better to obey orders than to be respectful."

They both sat down.

Huang Wenwen made a calculation for Yu Youyao: "Silk, tea, salt and porcelain were the main industry of the Zhou Dynasty. Silk, in particular, was deeply loved by overseas countries. The amount of silk traded through sea trade every year can reach 300,000 pieces. , an ordinary piece of silk can be bought for five taels of silver in the Zhou Dynasty, and twenty taels of silver overseas, not to mention the more exquisite silk..."

He chattered loudly and rattled his abacus, asking how many looms there were in Jiangnan, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Henan, how much silk could be produced each season, and what was the cost of each piece of silk.

Finally, it was concluded: "There are more than 300,000 looms in Jiangnan, Yunnan, Guizhou, Shandong and Henan, weaving silk day and night, and can produce about 500,000 pieces of silk every year. The annual silk income of the Zhou Dynasty can It’s more than ten million taels.”

Yu Youyao knew that silk was highly profitable, but he never calculated the account in detail: "This is almost the entire year's expenditure of the Zhou Dynasty. The income from salt, tea, and porcelain should be no less than that from silk, plus some other miscellaneous things." Regarding taxation, why is it that the state treasury still cannot collect more than it spends and has to make up for the deficit every year?”

Huang Wenwen smiled: "Apart from the high risks of maritime trade, the constant presence of Japanese pirates and the losses suffered by pirates and ship robbers, the remaining profits were exploited by the officials below. In the end, only about 30% of the profits actually entered the national treasury."

Zhejiang Dusi colluded with Japanese pirates and pirates, and the hijacked merchant ships were equivalent to Zhejiang Dusi's "tribute" to the pirates and Japanese pirates.

Yu Youyao took a breath: "You are really greedy."

Huang Wenwen was convinced and continued: "Tassah silkworms eat a lot. Excessive silkworm rearing will destroy the mountain forest environment. Considering sustainable development, the number of tussah silkworms must be controlled. As a result, the production of tussah silk is actually very limited. However, along the coast The temperature is suitable, so I suggest introducing high-quality mulberry seedlings from the Zhejiang area and planting mulberry trees in places that are not suitable for farming."

Huang Wenwen was from Liaodong and knew Liaodong very well. He had been to Zhejiang before and had an understanding of Zhejiang's landforms and environment. He dared to say this only with factual basis.

"Mulberry silkworms eat less food and need to be raised at home. Mulberry trees grow very fast and can mature into trees in almost three to five years. Raising both oak and mulberry silkworms can not only greatly increase the silk production in Liaodong, but also give the oak forest a certain space for growth. , Only good oak trees can produce the best quality tussah silk."

Yu Youyao had some admiration for Huang Wenxian. This man was really smart and shrewd. He always had an account in mind, so he was not in a hurry to talk to him.

really!

Huang Wenwen changed the topic and continued: "Based on the current scale of sericulture in Liaodong, a total of 50,000 looms can be set up, which can produce nearly 100,000 pieces of silk every year. Tussah silk is better than mulberry silk, and the price is also high. Nearly times, the profit is very considerable.”

In the Zhou Dynasty, mulberry silk was still the main product.

The output of tussah silk is even smaller, and it is generally used for making military armors, and some high-end luxury silks are supplied to the upper class, and are almost inaccessible to ordinary people.

Therefore, the profit of tussah silkworms is higher than that of mulberry silkworms.

This does not mean that mulberry silkworms are inferior to tussah silkworms.

There are also many precious silkworms among the mulberry silkworms, such as snow firefly silkworms, amber silkworms, etc. The silk they produce is extremely precious. There are less than a hundred silkworms every year, and almost all of them enter the palace.

Yu Youyao thought thoughtfully. Silkworms have great potential in the coastal areas of Liaodong.

Huang Wenwen said: "When the sericulture in Liaodong develops, another 50,000 looms can be added. When mulberry silkworms develop to a large scale, another 50,000 looms can be added. Based on the growth rate of mulberry trees, up to 50,000 looms can be added. By the year, the number of looms in Liaodong could reach at least 150,000."

Having taken in the refugees, there is no shortage of population in the Liaodong area and there is great potential for development.

Yu Youyao was a little surprised: "The silk produced in Zhejiang already accounts for half of the country's total output. If the scale of sericulture in Liaodong can be developed, it can compete with Zhejiang."

She hadn't settled this account before.

Huang Wenwen nodded: "Drought is a disaster, but it is also an opportunity. Through the "national policy", we have vigorously developed sericulture. Silk, weaving, printing, dyeing, cutting, embroidery, etc. related to sericulture can drive almost the entire northern border. Silk is a military necessity and is in high demand. Silk can be exported to overseas countries and exchanged for other countries’ special items, as well as food, spices, medicinal materials, etc.”

Yu Youyao noticed that Huang Wenwen advocated selling silk from the Zhou Dynasty to other countries in exchange for other countries' resources. This would avoid the excessive development of sericulture, which would lead to a reduction in grain production and a shortage of materials.

It also put an end to excessive commercialization in the north, which resulted in merchants being more valuable than people and people being inferior to merchants. The merchants in turn oppressed the people, resulting in lower productivity and lower grain production.

Foresight indeed.

The issues that she had been worried about before were also taken into consideration.

Huang Wenwen added: "Sweet potatoes have a high yield and are cheap to work. A small amount of land can be used to harvest a large amount of food. If we are self-sufficient, we can vigorously develop sericulture and there is a lot to do."

If Princess Shaoyi fails to grow sweet potatoes, the first thing to ensure in the north is grain production. However, the north is vast and sparsely populated, and the grain output is low. Most people need to be mobilized to farm to ensure that the grain produced can feed the local area. The common people, and even military supplies, no longer have the manpower to raise silkworms and develop commerce.

To put it bluntly, the development of the North is based on sweet potatoes.

Including taking in refugees, resettling refugees, implementing national policies, and even later confronting the gentry, Fanshu was the confidence that allowed the You Army to be invincible.

Huang Wenwen's words summed up the future development trend of the northern border.

Yu Youyao felt confident: "According to your opinion, if we want to introduce foreign merchants to the Liaodong area, we should give priority to businesses related to silk and grain production?"

Most of the foreign merchants came for her and Yin Huaixi. Many merchants brought a large amount of supplies to contact the government. They even sent "filial piety" to her and Yin Huaixi through the government. The imperial court issued national policies, and a large number of supplies poured in. After arriving in the north, the government did not dare to make arbitrary decisions, so she and Yin Huaixi needed to be careful.

However, the development of the northern border is not yet clear, and the merchants' overtures need to be treated with caution.

Neither she nor Yin Huaixi could do anything to gain advantage for nothing.