New Shun 1730

The Reclamation Company received the order and quickly sent people to tell the people of Yanhu who were still fighting to the death to defend the conditions necessary for their survival to what Liu Yu had said.

As for the business owners who chose to surrender, Liu Yu also temporarily left them here. Just ask them to keep the deed and not proceed with the transaction for the time being.

Lin Min knew that Liu Yu must have a back-up plan, and even guessed Liu Yu's back-up plan from Liu Yu's actions, so he said: "My lord, I think we should have an honest talk between you and me. Don't talk about it. Morality, don’t talk about the people.”

Liu Yu has no objection to this.

"That's exactly what I mean. If you and I can't work together as one, we will really be failing His Majesty."

He waved his hand and signaled everyone here to evacuate first.

After everyone evacuated, Lin Min first expressed his concerns.

"My lord, of all the things that are going on in Jiangsu, the most important thing is the production of salt. Salt production is the foundation of the reform. I think, my lord, is he a bit neglecting the basics and pursuing the last?"

Liu Yu said, "What should we do about salt production?"

"There is no shortage of capital, technology, and employees. There is really nothing to control."

"Now that the news has been released, do you think big businessmen will miss this opportunity to invest in salt production? Capital is flowing in, but there is no need to worry about lack."

"There is no shortage of capital, the technology is already there, and workers are everywhere. Mr. Lin doesn't have to worry about this at all. And you and I don't have to worry about things over there."

"The factory has its own system and the court has its own supervision. He produces his own salt, and you and I take care of it ourselves."

"The so-called change is a struggle for interests. Fighting with others is the most important thing. Mr. Lin should also come to terms with me. What do you think of this matter?"

Lin Min knew that Liu Yu's words were true. Since they did not need to take care of the salt factory, it could still produce normally. Well, indeed, the most troublesome thing is to deal with these salt households who are destined to be eliminated.

There is no one behind these salt households.

But some people like to talk about these salt households. Before, when the salt households were "eating maggots, having no clothes for a season, and no money every year," no one really stood up to change their living environment.

However, once it is linked to reform, there will be overwhelming voices speaking out and petitioning for the people.

And the real people...that is, the real salt households who are stupid and obedient and don't dare to cook private salt, or who don't have enough grass to cook private salt. They are basically illiterate and naturally have no voice.

Private salt is not something anyone can do if they want to. It is like a newly emerged barren beach and reed marsh that has not yet been registered by the court.

So, what can a wealthy businessman with a team, capital and power get? Or is it what the poor people can only get if they eat shrimp paste mostly filled with maggots?

It's obvious.

Making money by cooking private salt requires unregistered reed beds. As long as it is registered, there are no actuaries in the court, but at least one hundred acres of reeds can make enough salt.

These salt households who have truly benefited from this and are willing to reclaim wasteland have no voice.

Faced with Liu Yu's question, Lin Min could only say: "My lord, you and I are like grasshoppers on a rope now. I can't look back."

"I am a salt policy reformer, but the way I think about it is completely different from what you think. In fact, you and I had already crossed paths when we were in Huaibei."

"It's just that I have been tied up now, and I can't retreat. Your Majesty has also told me that this time is a century-long plan that affects the country, and I must do my best."

"I must deal with the matter. However, the Duke's methods are rough. The ancients said that one should relax and be civilized and martial. Excessive is not enough, and moderation is needed."

"Your Majesty ordered me to visit Jiangsu and supervise the salt administration. I think it is for this reason. It should be because he is afraid that the government's methods will be too rough, so he thinks that he will do everything possible to surrender and block the mouths of the merchants and scholars of Yang and Huai. So he sent me here. Assistant, so as not to go too far."

Lin Min's worry stems from Liu Yu's handling of the matter.

At first, when Liu Yu forced the dealers to deliver the contract documents, Lin Min thought he was preparing to shed blood.

As long as you get the contract documents, you can directly go to the army to drive them away. If there is any disobedience or even resistance, everyone will be arrested and sent to Nanyang plantations.

Those who don't want to leave will lose their property and will most likely become bandits. At that time, they can be arrested and shot in the name of "suppressing bandits".

However, Liu Yu did not do this directly.

Instead, he notified the reclamation company and asked them to inform the salt households that the landowners had surrendered.

Lin Min was unsure about what Liu Yu was going to do.

But I guess the methods will definitely be extremely rough.

After telling her worries and speculations, Lin Min was thinking about how to solve the matter so as to minimize the noise.

However, after hearing Lin Min's worries, Liu Yu smiled and said: "Master Lin, I once read a strange book called "On Contradiction"."

"This book is excellent. It teaches you how to identify problems, resolve conflicts, and treat the symptoms and root causes."

"But after I studied it over and over again, I found that if it is practiced backwards, it is also exquisite."

Lin Min also heard Liu Yu talk about contradictions more than once, and believed that there might really be such a strange book.

"Reverse training?"

After thinking about this word for a moment, Lin Min seemed to have some realization.

"What the Duke means is that this book teaches people how to see through problems. Only when you see through problems can you roughly know how to solve them. This reverse practice..."

Liu Yu said with a smile: "The so-called reverse training is fishing in troubled waters, pretending to be confused, deliberately avoiding, putting the last thing first and taking the second priority. There is no contradiction at all, but creating contradictions to cover up the real contradictions."

"After all, first of all, you have to know what the real contradiction is, so that you can avoid and hide the real contradiction. But in fact, Zhenglian teaches you how to solve it. If you use it in reverse, the benefits are endless."

Immediately, Liu Yu analyzed the various contradictions in the salt reform issue using principles that Lin Min could basically understand.

The root of all contradictions lies in the impact of the initial industrialization model of large salt fields on the model of small salt households and small producers.

Under this fundamental contradiction, many resulting oppositions arise.

Let’s first clarify the main contradiction.

Lin Min thought about what Liu Yu said about "reverse training" and suddenly realized it.

"The Duke's reclamation of wasteland in Huainan can also be regarded as an attempt to cover up this fundamental contradiction."

"Creating something out of nothing, the contradiction between the small production model of salt households and the large salt field model in Huaibei was transformed into a conflict between the land reclamation company and the salt households."

"If Huainan doesn't reclaim wasteland, maybe someone can see through the root of this matter and lead the problem to the big salt field?"

Liu Yu smiled and analyzed the remaining conflicts that were derived or created.

Finally, he proposed two solutions he found after "reverse training".

"The first way is to lead the conflict between the reclamation company and the original salt households to the internal conflicts of the salt households themselves."

“Put salt households with property rights in grass ponds against salt households without property rights in grass ponds and create internal strife between them. They will not be given the opportunity to unite to oppose large steam engine salt-drying companies.”

"Fighting will lead to internal friction, and friction will lead to weakness. If power is weak, the momentum will be weak, and if the momentum is weak, it can be broken."

"The second method is to carry the banner of benevolence and righteousness against benevolence and righteousness."

The first method after reverse training is to let the salt households fight among themselves. Let the salt households with grass farms and the salt households without grass farms fight first.

Lin Min thinks this method is easy to understand.

He even thought of Liu Yu's move to tell the reclamation company not to act rashly, and he seemed to have some ideas.

As for the second method, the so-called carrying the banner of benevolence and righteousness to oppose benevolence and righteousness, this made Lin Min a little puzzled.

This matter requires the cooperation of Lin Min, the governor of Jiangsu Province, otherwise it will not be done at all, and it will inevitably make a mess.

So Liu Yu said: "Mr. Lin, you have to think about it first. What are these salt merchants who are opposed to land enclosures? What are they opposing? Looking at the essence through the phenomenon, why are they opposed?"

Lin Min thought for a while and sighed.

"I understand what the Duke means. The reason for their opposition is not to maintain their status as normal salt households."

"They are opposed to land enclosure, not against the enclosure of their grasslands. But they are against the reclamation company's enclosure of 'ownerless' grasslands."

"They are not opposed to the encirclement of their land because they will be compensated. But they are opposed to the encirclement of their unowned land because they benefit from the land without being compensated."

This book is not difficult to understand.

If every salt household is a normal and legal salt household, then the conditions provided by the reclamation company are very generous compared to their original maggot-eating life.

Although, in fact, this condition was caused by the imperial court relaxing the policy of "no reclamation of wasteland" after liberalizing the salt policy in Huainan.

Although, the fundamental reason for this condition is that the person who formulated the condition believes that the small-scale farmer economy has extremely poor risk resistance, and farming here requires skills. It will inevitably go bankrupt within three years, and then the land can be recovered at a low price.

This is equivalent to the company defrauding the land without spending any money.

Otherwise, cash compensation would be even more expensive.

Now we will compensate the salt households with 25 acres of land without paying a penny. During this time of water conservancy construction, salt households who have acquired land must also use it, after all, they will need it later.

After two or three years, when the land is exhausted, if you lend some money, the regular interest rate will be 36%. If you can't repay the land, you might be able to earn a year's interest in vain. This year's interest debt can be paid back through work, and there is no need to pay wages.

The premise of all this is that it is very easy for small farmers to go bankrupt. As for whether it is true or not, this is nonsense. Regardless of other places, just like the saline-alkali land in northern Jiangsu that has not been washed away by weeds, add Mexican cotton, floods, storm surges, and salt backlashes. If a small farmer alone does not go bankrupt in three years, we can only say that the Queen Mother is his. Mother.

But in the eyes of these salt households, they can get 20 to 30 acres of initially cultivated land, and they can also form a village community, rent cattle, and borrow the company's water conservancy facilities, which can be said to be very generous.

If you don’t know how to grow cotton, don’t be afraid. You can just grow it yourself. Isn’t that simple?

What if I accumulate family property, eventually annex a hundred acres of land, and become a landlord?

Previously, land reclamation was strictly prohibited for fear of delaying salt production and for fear of insufficient grass for cooking salt.

If we really analyze the essence of most of the opponents now, they are not opposed to the circle of grassroots that surrounds them, but against the circle of 'ownerless' grasshoppers.

Because "no owner" means no owner on the surface of the court, but in fact there is an owner.

With their connections and financial resources, these salt merchants who chartered the fields actually took control of the ownerless grasslands and used them to boil salt.

The reclamation company encircled these terra nullius lands, leaving them no chance to cook private salt, so they firmly opposed it.

After Lin Min figured out the fundamental reason for the opposition, he began to understand Liu Yu's idea of ​​opposing benevolence and righteousness under the banner of benevolence and righteousness.

Liu Yu added: "If only these salt households are against this matter, it is actually very simple. Arrest them and send them to Southeast Asia. Follow the contract and the previous completion of the course."

"However, the trouble with this matter is that some people will take the opportunity to cause trouble. They will make a big noise with the excuses of 'seizing the people's property', 'competing with the people for profit' and 'destroying the salt system'. And, obviously, there will be many people."

"First, some scholars have a real sense of righteousness and compassion in their hearts."

"Second, they are the barking dogs raised by the salt merchants in Huai and Yang. They are scholars, powerful, famous, and righteous. They use benevolence, righteousness, people's property, and people's livelihood to suppress us."

"Do you dare to oppose the maintenance of the small producer model? Do you dare to oppose benevolence and morality? You don't dare, and I don't dare. This is politically correct."

"What should we do?"

"This means that we will carry the banner of benevolence and righteousness to oppose benevolence and righteousness."