Chapter 10 Fusang Province (8)

In terms of economy, it goes without saying that in Wanli, when the corruption of the imperial court reached its extreme, the total economic output of the Ming Dynasty was also the world's number one. Although no one counted this accurate number, no one denied it. Now, with the recovery of the Ming Dynasty's national strength and economic prosperity, coupled with the relaxation of the imperial court's domestic policies, it naturally stimulated the rapid development of domestic industry and commerce. Whether it is self-sufficiency or foreign trade, it is constantly changing, which can be described as changing with each passing day.

Textile industry, the largest profitable industry in the Ming Dynasty, is not only the supply of domestic demand, but also exported to dozens of countries such as Japan, Southeast Asia, Europe and other countries every year. Silk alone brings tens of millions of silver dragon yuan to the court every year. This was something I could not imagine before, and it also created dozens of weaving kings.

Steel smelting is a pillar of heavy industry that is related to national security and a strategic resource. After the imperial court nationalized the mines, all of them were mined and smelted in a centralized manner by the imperial court, which not only saved manpower and costs, but also saved resources and smelted better steel. The steel output increased year by year. In addition to some special steels used in military industry that needed further processing, the rest not only met domestic needs, but also exported to some friendly countries to earn a large amount of foreign exchange. Of course, these foreign exchanges are naturally hard currency, gold and silver.

In terms of infrastructure, although it is incomparable to later generations, with the great investment of the court every year, especially in the eastern region, a wave of road construction and bridge construction has been set off. Under the call of the court, the people in their spare time were very active. After all, this is a good thing that benefits the country and the people. No matter how ignorant the people are, they understand that if the road is repaired and the bridge is opened, it will be beneficial to them without any harm. The repair of these things is paid by the court, and it does not require the people to have a penny. The people who build roads and bridges still manage food and wages. Such good things are something that I never thought about before, and naturally they are very enthusiastic. In a few years, the road conditions in the eastern coastal areas have been greatly improved, and transportation has been much smoother than before. The journey of four or five days is now only half. It is a huge joy for those who do business and travel far away!

What we have to talk about here is postal service. Since the reform, the postal service has not only quickly turned losses into profits, but also continued to innovate in the reform. Now ordinary people can also bring their greetings to their relatives from afar through the postal system. Ordinary people no longer have to worry about not being able to get messages from their relatives from afar. They just need to buy a "stamp" and paste it on a specially-sale envelope, then write the address of their relatives, put it on the written letter, seal it, and throw it into the green box with long gaps. After a few days, at most, the letter will not exceed one month. The letter will appear in the hands of their relatives, which is convenient and fast. It can be imagined how heavy and tear-jerking a piece of thin paper carrying longings are for him!

The emergence of "stamps" has led to the emergence of many bills, such as "rice stamps", "nex stamps", "oil stamps", etc. Most of them are self-made and have no official color. However, after the business grows bigger, they naturally seek the brand culture, from rough to exquisite, which has promoted the development of "trademarks". The court naturally promulgated the Trademark Law to protect registered trademarks in a timely manner. This is also to improve and regulate economic development, protect some advantageous industries, and make the economy develop well, fast, healthy and healthy.

Regarding the invention of stamps, some people say that this was invented by Liu Mao, the Secretary for Postal Affairs, and later generations, Liu Mao neither admitted nor denied this. Who invented it. It was not until Liu Mao died that his descendants found it in the memoirs written by Liu Mao. Although it was not described in detail, literally, the inventor pointed to a person. After Liu Mao’s descendants discovered it, they did not dare to publish it. Instead, they continued to collect this memoir. It was not until a hundred years later that Zhu Yinglong had published this memoir, which solved the mystery hidden for decades. The inventor was Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty!

After the sea ban was lifted, the shipping industry in the Ming Dynasty developed rapidly. Various shipyards emerged like mushrooms after a rain. Various ships were built one after another, which also led to the development of fishing and fishing. Fishing has become a very popular industry. As long as you master the changes in the sea, you can return with a full load every time you go to sea. Some of the fresh sea fish are sold directly and some are pickled. They can also be made into dry goods and bought in the mainland. The lives of fishermen are getting more and more nourishing every year.

The Construction Bank, led by the Harem Group, achieved unprecedented success in coastal fishery development and helping farmers generate income. The non-performing loan rate was almost small, and the bank also achieved unprecedented development. It has become the largest privately qualified bank except the Central Bank of the Ming Empire. It has deposits of more than 50 million silver dragon yuan and loans of nearly 40 million yuan. The rest is used for investment, which brings more than 20% of the return rate to the banks almost every year. Although it is not the most profitable part of the Harem Commercial Group, it is indeed the most stable part.

In fact, before he knew it, Zhu Yinglong himself didn't know that even if he didn't become an emperor, he could still become the most popular person in this world, because the wealth he owned is probably not as good as the ancient families in Europe that have been passed down for thousands of years. If the Forbidden City is included, it would be considered the richest person on the entire earth.

This is a typical collusion between officials and businessmen, but this official position is so big that no one cares about it, and this business is so big that it can manage anyone. It would be strange if such a combination is not profitable!

Of course, being rich to this point is just a bunch of numbers, but Zhu Yinglong’s hobby has one more thing, that is, collecting rare treasures from other countries, especially the other’s national treasures. Zhu Yinglong planned to build a building similar to the Old Summer Palace when he was rich and had no place to build a building similar to the Old Summer Palace, including the architectural culture of all countries and nations in the world, and then place the treasures from other countries for future generations to enjoy?

This idea is really great, but Zhu Yinglong knew that there was no immortal dynasty for thousands of years, so he had no intention of putting the authentic products in it. Naturally, these authentic products would be kept, and what was put into it was naturally fakes. In this way, even if these countries become stronger in the future, they would only be fakes, and the authentic products would always belong to China. Although no one knows what will happen in the future, preparing for something may not be a bad thing!

Of course, global unification is a great dream, but it is impossible to achieve the earth in its current state. Although the earth is very small, it is very large for individuals. The transportation is underdeveloped and the communication is backward. It is already the limit to be able to control the territory of the Ming Dynasty. Why was the Great Mongol Empire split in the past? It was not that the place was too big and could not be controlled. It would be better to let your brothers be emperors and be harmonious.

Zhu Yinglong himself knew very well that at most he would firmly hold Asia in his hands, and the countries on the edge could only control and could not directly rule. Zhu Yinglong did not want the Ming Dynasty to fight every day. Of course, the war must be fought. If long-term comfort is not a good thing for a country, so for actual combat training, it naturally requires some special means, and there will be more means to create some friction in part.

The education industry is Zhu Yinglong’s top priority. If a country wants to develop and the nation will last forever, talents are the key. Without talents, it will not only be the decline of the country, but even the demise of the nation. Therefore, education is the focus of Zhu Yinglong’s reform of the Ming Dynasty, focusing on gradually abolishing the old imperial examinations to establishing new universities, standardizing education from low to high levels, and also some measures to encourage and aid students. The court’s emphasis on education is unprecedented in thousands of years. Education is to improve the quality of the population. Only when the quality is improved can society make overall progress. Without the overall progress of society, it is only a way to seek death.

Although there is no nine years of compulsory education, Zhu Yinglong issued an edict that all school children of appropriate age, regardless of gender, must go to the township to study until graduation. If they are not able to pay tuition fees, they will be paid in advance by the court and local government government offices. Anyone who does not allow their children to study or have the ability to pay tuition fees will be found, whether they are doing business or farming, they will be punished with a double tax increase. Of course, the law is one thing, and it is another thing to implement it. However, after the promulgation of this law, the education of the Ming Dynasty began to be from the essence of the Ming Dynasty.

The transformation of Englishization from popularization is a good phenomenon. Once children from poor families have learned knowledge or mastered a technology, even a little bit, it may change their destiny, especially for girls. This is an amazing decree. Later historians commented that it was this decree that clearly required women to enroll in school. In addition to the enlightened social atmosphere during the Chongzhen period, women were out of the historical shackles of "men are superior to women". From then on, the call for equality became louder and louder, and eventually headed to a new historical period!

A decree not only changed thousands of Chinese women, allowing them to gain equality and freedom, but also changed all women in the world, making the Ming Dynasty the holy place that all women in the world yearn for the most.

This is the original words of a female historian, Erin (China) five hundred years later.
Chapter completed!