Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Those reformists in the 118th Cabinet

Lu Gai, the vice-president of the Royal Society, went to the city with his head full of confusion, and entered the palace of Qin Guojing's eldest princess in a daze.

The eldest princess often invited scholars before, but she never invited anyone alone.

Moreover, the president has been very busy recently.

"Lu Gai pays homage to His Highness."

"President Lu, please sit down."

In order to avoid suspicion, the meeting was not held indoors, but at a waterside pavilion called Lixue Pavilion.

The best green tea was served, and Lu Gai nodded to the maid to thank him.

Zhu Tangxi took the bag brought by Qingluan: "I heard that Yunnan has also begun to cultivate tobacco extensively, but the best shredded tobacco comes from Nanyang. This was brought back from Nanyang by an elder. I can't tell the difference between good and bad. Please give me some advice. President Lu, give it a try.”

It was good tea and good cigarettes. Lu Gai felt that things were a bit difficult to handle.

He didn't beat around the bush and asked directly: "If your Highness has any orders, just tell them."

Zhu Tangxi asked: "Does today's cement need to be improved?"

Lu Gai replied: "There are two types of cement on the market now, each with its own advantages and disadvantages, and both need to be improved. In the past few decades, many people have started to improve cement. Some results have been achieved one after another, such as adding certain materials and calcining them. But overall there has been no qualitative breakthrough.”

Zhu Tangxi asked again: "What is the best smelting furnace now?"

Lu Gai said: "Blast furnaces and converters. It was too dangerous and hard for workers to stir molten iron, so forty years ago, someone proposed the idea of ​​a converter. But suitable converter steel could not be found, and the furnace temperature of early converters was relatively low. ”

"It wasn't until seven years ago that Mr. Wan, He, Xu and Xue finally succeeded in producing stable and usable converter steel. Mr. Wan jumped four levels in a row and was promoted to Jade Bachelor, and the three craftsmen He, Xu and Xue also made an exception. Bachelor of Jasper.”

Zhu Tangxi said: "I remember. The year Mr. Wan was promoted to Emerald Bachelor, I just moved out of the palace. Can you leave Mr. Wan's mailing address?"

Lu Gai reminded: "Your Highness can summon you directly, but the steel used in this kind of converter is a secret of the imperial court. Currently, there are only four government-run steel plants in the country that can manufacture it. Anyone who dares to imitate it is committing rebellion."

"So there are no converters among the people?" Zhu Tangxi asked.

Lu Gai said: "Other government-run steel plants and private steel plants can spend money to customize converters from the four major steel plants. But they cannot inquire about the steel formula to prevent the secrets from being leaked overseas."

Zhu Tangxi asked again: "Which government-owned steel plant that can produce converters is the closest to Luoyang?"

Lu Gai said: "Xuzhou Steel Plant. Wan Xueshi worked as a supervisor in Xuzhou Steel Plant. Although his official position was not very high, his official rank was already the first rank. Even his wife was awarded the first rank. "

Zhu Tangxi had finished asking questions and handed over a bag of tobacco.

This is seeing off guests.

Lu Gai thanked him and took it, took the tobacco and excused himself, and left the princess' house in a daze.

He thought about it all the way in the carriage, and based on the questions raised by the princess, he guessed that someone wanted to improve cement.

Lu Gai didn't do much research on this.

Converters are Daming's top mechanical equipment. Although you can spend money to order them from the four major steel mills, each order needs to be submitted to the Ministry of Industry for approval!

Leaking the formula of converter steel and privately imitating converters are the same as concealing arms.

This was a decree issued by Emperor Dingtai. He was worried that someone would quietly build ordnance on a large scale.

…

Xie Yan was really shocked when he received the letter from the princess.

The Ming Dynasty in this time and space has actually developed the converter steelmaking method?

However, the word "converter" awakened similar memories in Xie Yan.

In the compulsory course "Civil Engineering Materials" for civil engineers, there is a chapter dedicated to how to prepare cement. Although the basic formula is explained in detail, the machinery for making cement is explained in one sentence and with a picture.

Xie Yan only knew that a "rotary kiln" was needed to prepare cement. The picture showed a long and large pipe.

Apart from the shell of the big pipe, nothing can be seen. Who knows what the inside of the cement rotary kiln looks like.

Xie Yan thought to himself: Will the cement rotary kiln rotate like a converter?

In the early days of cement firing, traditional vertical kilns were used, and every method was tried to increase the furnace temperature.

After the invention of Portland cement, although it was widely sought after, the quality of the cement varied due to unstable furnace temperatures.

It took another half a century before someone built the first cement rotary kiln, and the cement industry was basically established.

Xie Yan decided to take action.

He first went to Jiangzuo Village to visit the old president, then went to the city to visit Chen Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry, and then went to the princess's home again.

With three letters of recommendation from the old president, Chen Shangshu and the eldest princess, Xie Yan also brought his Lotus Bachelor's jade pendant and finally successfully entered the Ministry of Industry's database.

A director from the Ministry of Industry accompanied him throughout the process, which not only facilitated Xie Yan's search for information, but also supervised and prevented Xie Yan from taking away top-secret information.

Xie Yan asked the director of the Ministry of Industry to find the drawings of various furnaces and kilns across the country.

For several days, Xie Yan was checking information.

…

Zhu Tangxi was waiting to be received by the Queen Mother.

It was not until two days later that Queen Mother Ye sent someone to summon her.

Tao Jinfeng was helping the little emperor with his homework, and Queen Mother Ye called Zhu Tangxi to the side hall next door.

"I heard that you invited Bachelor Xie to play polo?" Queen Mother Ye said with an expression on her face.

Zhu Tangxi said: "I also invited him to sit at home."

Queen Mother Ye asked: "Is he determined to have an official career?"

Zhu Tangxi nodded: "Xie Liulang is devoted to academic studies, and has recently been busy improving cement technology."

Empress Dowager Ye smiled and said, "When you need a marriage, just come to the palace and tell me."

Zhu Tangxi asked, "Is the cabinet still arguing?"

Empress Dowager Ye sighed, "Alas, they have been arguing for several years. When they come to a conclusion, they issue a decree, and then they continue to argue behind closed doors."

The seven cabinet ministers still disagree.

They all agree to reform, but they have huge differences on how to reform.

Especially those related to land!

…

The cabinet, another meeting.

Yuan Huaiyi, who was born as a low-ranking military officer and was known as the first to defend the king, sat there at this moment, looking old and frail, with his eyes half-closed, as if he could fall asleep at any time.

He came from the banks of the Heilongjiang River, and his foundation was too shallow. Now he has lost even his military power, and he has been pretending to be deaf and dumb since he entered the cabinet.

You can argue as much as you want, just don't disturb me when I sleep.

"Reform industry and commerce first, and agriculture cannot be touched, especially the land cannot be measured!" Deputy Prime Minister Ge Congxin shouted loudly.

Prime Minister Deng Gongwu said: "You can leave agriculture alone for now, but you must start working on it within three to five years at the latest. Not only are mergers intensifying, but the chaotic and miscellaneous taxes are also making a comeback. If there were no large amounts of overseas grain to be transferred for disaster relief, there would be countless civil unrest during the years of famine."

Ge Congxin said: "Since grain can be transferred from overseas, don't touch it for now. The area where the Ganges estuary meets the sea has been used by Indian aborigines for decades, and now it is a large granary if Han people are moved there."

Decades ago, the Ming Dynasty sent troops to help Prince Xina restore his country, and Prince Xina gave the Ganges Delta to the Ming Dynasty.

Why was the donation so straightforward?

Because the Ganges Delta in the Middle Ages was full of mangroves and swamps, it was not a large granary at all, but was full of miasma and had a very high mortality rate.

The Ming Dynasty built a port there, and the garrison was not large, and it did not care about places far from the port at all.

But there was one thing that it insisted on doing for decades.

That is, the central coastal area on the east coast of the South Asian subcontinent was colonized, and Han people were constantly migrated to the governor's office there. The locals whose land was seized by the Han people were thrown to the Ganges Delta to reclaim.

At the same time, the methods used to deal with grassland peoples since ancient times were used to divide and win over the Indian countries. To put it bluntly, it was the British shit-stirring trick.

The Ming Dynasty did not allow a strong country to emerge in India. If any state showed signs of rising, a large number of small countries would be pulled to fight. The Ming Dynasty only needed to send out one or two thousand elite troops, and the rest were all troops from various Indian states.

The Ming Dynasty would also buy war prisoners obtained in the war at a low price and throw them all to the Ganges Delta for reclamation.

Decades later, large tracts of fertile farmland have appeared in the Ganges Delta.

Ge Congxin's governance philosophy is very simple, which is to suck the blood of overseas colonies and prolong the life of the Ming Dynasty, which is intensifying land annexation. The gradually cultivated Ganges Delta is the next blood bank of the Ming Dynasty.

Deng Gongwu questioned: "If there is a national natural disaster, and refugees gather in all provinces, will overseas grain still be useful? You can save one province from disaster, but can you save ten provinces from famine at the same time?"

Ge Congxin said: "Ten provinces can still be saved from famine, but the army needs to be dispatched to quell the rebellion. From ancient times to the present, that situation is normal. Although the annexation of the country is intensifying now, the people are living very well. Since the Qin and Han Dynasties, which prosperous era can compare with the present?"

Deng Gongwu was furious: "You are just a paperhanger!"

"What else can be done?" Ge Congxin said, "Which official of the Ming Dynasty has not learned the history of reform in the former Song Dynasty. From Wang Linchuan to Cai Jing, which land inventory did not make a mess? Wang Linchuan had to check the land, because the Zhao Song court had no money! "

"The current Ming treasury has gradually filled up after years of peace. Since the treasury has money, why are you checking the land? You and I, and all the gentlemen present, who can check the land like Taizong did? It will inevitably cause chaos in the world!"

Deng Gongwu also knew that the other party was right, and he said in a slightly slower tone: "No matter how difficult things are, someone has to do it. If you and I don't check, will it be left to future generations to check when it is difficult to reverse the decline? "

Ge Congxin said: "I am not afraid of a little chaos, but I am afraid of chaos in the world! I am afraid that we will do bad things with good intentions!"

Deng Gongwu looked at the other cabinet ministers, and everyone bowed their heads wherever he looked.

With the lessons learned from Wang Anshi and Cai Jing, all cabinet ministers were cautious and tried not to touch the land if they could. Because they could not afford the stigma of causing chaos in the world.

Moreover, the Ming Dynasty was supported by the industrial and commercial taxes and could continue to suck blood from overseas territories. It was not necessary to check the land.

It was impossible to check.

Once it was checked, it would be chaotic, and after the chaos, countless ordinary people would have to pay the price.

It might even aggravate the merger!

The land tax was distributed according to the land tax by Zhu Guoxiang and Zhu Ming, which had completely fallen into the trap of "Huang Zongxi's Law".

When the land tax was distributed according to the land tax, a large number of miscellaneous taxes were abolished, and the remaining miscellaneous taxes were all distributed according to the land. Now, the miscellaneous taxes that were distributed should be collected as a matter of course, and the messy miscellaneous taxes have made a comeback.

Moreover, due to the large number of "flying" phenomena at the same time as the land merger, many people had to bear miscellaneous taxes that did not belong to them for no reason.

Seeing that the prime minister and deputy prime minister were silent, Yang Zhengfu, the fifth-ranked cabinet minister, spoke up: "I think we should use the method discussed last time. First, rectify the industrial and commercial taxes and use the increased industrial and commercial taxes to replenish the central and local finances; second, after the local finances are replenished by industrial and commercial taxes, order the local governments to cancel various illegal taxes."

"As for agriculture, let's put it aside for now."

Hou Guang, the third-ranked cabinet minister, immediately seconded: "I agree to shelve agricultural reforms."

"I agree too."

"Second."

"I agree too."

"..."

One by one, cabinet ministers expressed their opinions, with only Deng Gongwu and Yuan Huaiyi remaining.

Yuan Huaiyi fell asleep.

Deng Gongwu sighed, he could not go against the will of the people, not even with the support of the Queen Mother and the Emperor.

Like these ministers, he has an unstable foundation and needs to work together to implement reforms.

The cabinet ministers of this term are not closely involved in industry and commerce for the time being, but all of them come from gentry families.

They support reform, which is reforming industry and commerce, especially increasing industrial and commercial taxes in certain industries.

The essence of this reform is a counterattack by the big landowners against the capitalists!

When they develop their power in a few more years, they will gradually integrate with capital, and by then they will no longer even target industry and commerce.

It was not easy for Ge Congxin to fall out with Deng Gongwu: "Mr. Deng, shelving the dispute is the best result. Otherwise, if we argue for ten years, we will not be able to find out the reason. It is better to talk about something practical first, such as the industrial and commercial affairs that have long become a piece of paper. laws, how to actually implement them or simply repeal them.”

Zhang Yu, the sixth-ranked cabinet minister, said: "The ban on close relatives of dignitaries and officials from doing business can be abolished. They can just find a slave and push it out to run industry and commerce. It is difficult to find out if they hide it and go around and around. Simply just I am prohibited from doing business. If something goes wrong, I will investigate and find out.”

Deng Gongwu glanced at Zhang Yu and knew that these guys were impatient and wanted to justifiably let their relatives run certain industries that they had been eyeing for a long time.

This thing can't be stopped. Just like Zhang Yu said, just throw a slave out and you can get around the ban. As long as the master's power does not fall, those slaves will not dare to steal the shares.

Might as well put it on the table!

"Who supports the abolition of this ban?" Deng Gongwu asked.

The cabinet ministers raised their hands in approval.

Only Mr. Yuan Huaiyi is still sleeping.

Deng Gongwu said: "Since everyone agrees, I will make a statement to report to Your Majesty. Since the removal of local officials last year, local officials have improved, and the reform of industrial and commercial taxes can also be started. In the next half month, we will summarize and discuss The tax reform plan submitted by the Cabinet is adjourned!”

Deng Gongwu turned and left, while the other ministers were smiling.

After all the cabinet ministers left, the secretary of the meeting shouted: "Ms. Yuan, Mr. Yuan, it's time to wake up."

Yuan Huaiyi slowly opened his eyes: "Is the meeting over?"

"It's over." The clerk smiled.

Yuan Huaiyi stood up shakily and walked slowly out of the conference room on crutches.

More than three years ago, this man was still alive and kicking, leading the Shaanxi soldiers and horses straight to Luoyang, and even rode to Tongguan himself to persuade the defenders to surrender.

For some reason, I became very old as soon as I entered Beijing.