Shen Bing was serious about what he said. He didn't dare to monopolize the papermaking technology in the first place.
Paper may be a convenience for the people, but it is a propaganda and educational tool for those in power.
In other words, whoever masters the papermaking method masters the ability to conduct large-scale propaganda.
If you don't know how to make paper, you can only do it slowly with bamboo slips. By the time you get it out, the black and white leaflets on the other side will be flying all over the sky.
In an era without radio or television, this was the commanding heights of public opinion and the right to speak.
As the saying goes, "Every man is not guilty of having a jade in his possession."
Shen Bing discovered that paper is not a crime, and using paper to pay off debts is not a crime. Even doing business is not a big deal.
But if you want to monopolize the papermaking technology... wouldn't you mean competing with Ying Zheng for the throne?
This is so boring!
Therefore, the art of papermaking cannot be spread out.
However, as the saying goes, "There is no airtight wall in the world." As long as papermaking technology comes out and the production method is not complicated, it will not take long for it to be spread among the people.
Shen Bing has no control over who spread the news or how it spread, as long as it's not Shen Bing.
Ying Zheng pretended not to understand. He looked at the paper in his hand and said "Huh" with disdain:
"Is this thing so important? Does it require the captain to be so cautious?"
"I don't believe it..."
Shen Bing raised his head towards the training navy and replied:
"Why don't you believe it?"
"For example, if you want to use bamboo slips to write down the manufacturing method of the warship in front of you and send it to various places, how long will it take to complete it?"
"What if we use paper?
"Another example is the method of increasing food production, the production and improvement of weapons and even the issuance of orders..."
"If these are passed on to one place, it might be possible to use bamboo slips in both places."
"But what if it spreads throughout all the counties and counties in Da Qin, and even reaches every common person?"
Ying Zheng couldn't help but be stunned when he heard this.
He had previously thought more about how the paper would be used by the rebels. He had also thought about his knowledge and skills, but he had not expected it to be so profound.
Now when he heard what Shen Bing said, Ying Zheng suddenly became enlightened and thought to himself:
"Go on!"
"Just like the Daqin farming pattern, although it only contains a few simple sentences, it is very difficult to implement it from top to bottom to every household."
"The State of Qin even wrote it into law and implemented it for several years before it started to take effect."
"The fundamental reason is that it is difficult to make bamboo slips and cannot be transmitted on a large scale quickly."
"If we have paper, we can put the farming format into the hands of counties, counties, and even the people in the shortest time... Why is it so laborious and time-consuming?"
Thinking more carefully, Ying Zheng was secretly shocked:
"As Shen Bing said, paper is good for agriculture and military weapons."
"Wouldn't that make Qin stronger?"
"But the other countries don't know that the method of making this paper can only stay in the bamboo slip era. Is unification of the Central Plains still far away?"
"So... this Shen Bing was indeed sent by God to help me unify the Central Plains!"
"How could I forget this? Just now I was thinking..."
Thinking of this, Ying Zheng looked at Shen Bing with a happy face, thinking to himself that if Shicai had been impatient, he might have made a big mistake.
Of course, Shen Bing didn't know that he had escaped unintentionally. He also asked Ying Zheng:
"Are these papers enough to hold a hairpin?"
"If it's not enough, I'll ask someone to get more."
Ying Zheng quickly replied:
"More than enough, thank you Captain, I'll take my leave now!"
Zhao Gao felt a little surprised. Didn't he come here to ask for the method of making paper?
This method of preparation has not yet reached the king and he left like this?
This is not the character of the king...
However, when Ying Zheng told him to leave, Zhao Gao didn't dare to say anything. He responded and quickly followed behind.
Only after leaving the barracks did Zhao Gao dare to ask:
"Your Majesty, are we going to leave like this?"
"Then how to make it..."
Zhao Gao actually has some selfish motives. He loves calligraphy and is even a famous calligrapher.
Usually, if you want to show your calligraphy, you have to write on silk, which even Zhao Gao feels sad.
If you knew how to make that paper...
But Ying Zheng interrupted Zhao Gao in the carriage:
"What do you know?"
"This is God's will, and we cannot interfere with it!"
"You are not allowed to talk about this trip to anyone, do you understand?"
Zhao Gao and a group of personal guards hurriedly responded.
Zhao Gao became more and more puzzled. It was just a method of making paper. How could it be God's will?
However, Zhao Gao didn't dare to ask more questions, and he couldn't guess the reason all the way.
But Shen Bing was happy here. Whenever he needed anything in the military camp, Shen Bing would just "buy it" with a wave of his hand.
What to buy?
If you want wine, food, or anything else, all you need is a few pieces of paper.
Once paper is valuable and the price is stable, and a piece of paper can be worth ten yuan, then it is actually a hard currency equivalent to money... This may be the most primitive paper currency, which does not have any patterns and does not require anti-counterfeiting.
So why does Shen Bing want money? Isn't the paper piled in the captain's house money?
Only then did Shen Bing have the opportunity to calm down and look through the Navy roster.
In ancient times, armies were mostly organized by generals, troops, and troops.
The supreme commander is a general or general, such as Wang Jian, who is the commander-in-chief of the battle.
Under the general, there are several deputy generals, generals, such as Yang Duanhe.
The general is divided into several departments, and the subordinates are divided into several songs.
There is one captain in each department, such as the navy captain Shen Bing.
There is a military commander for each song, and Shen Bing has two military commanders under his command.
A captain usually commands 10,000 people, and 10,000 people often need five reserve officers.
These five military commanders are not prescribed to lead a certain unit. They usually serve as assistants to the captain. If the troops need to be divided for combat, they will only be temporarily assigned command tasks.
For example, if Shen Bing has 3,000 sailors, he only needs two military commanders.
If it is necessary to divide the troops in war, divide the three thousand men into two teams, one with one thousand and the other with two thousand.
There is no problem with a team of one thousand people, but a leader of two to five hundred can solve the command problem independently.
But how to command and coordinate a team of two thousand people?
Temporarily appoint one of the two to five hundred masters?
The 2,500-man leader had to command his own thousand-man army and the overall strategy. It was inevitable that he would be in a hurry and have unclear responsibilities. In addition, there was also the problem of the two 2,500-man leaders being dissatisfied with each other.
At this time, if a military commander is sent to command this team of two thousand people to fight, it will be clear and organized.
The two military commanders under Shen Bing were named Li Jian (jiān) and Chen Duan.
These two people were designated by Shen Bing based on their training performance, and they are both descendants of Wei nobles.
In fact, Shen Bing also wanted to select a few people from civilians or ordinary soldiers to serve as military commanders, but the result was disappointing to Shen Bing.
It is true that kings, princes, generals and prime ministers are not born, but they are educated.
This era is not like modern times where everyone is educated. Except for a very small number of people, ordinary people do not even have the opportunity to receive education.
And those who are uneducated and even illiterate are obviously not suitable for commanding troops.