Chapter 41 Pull out the radish and bring out the mud
After introducing the "mulberry fish pond" method, Shen Tingyang also prepared several backup plans.
Following Chongzhen's in-depth questioning, Shen Tingyang also suggested that in areas with more hills in the south, promote the new crops that the Hongyi people brought to the Ming Dynasty in recent years, expand the area of available arable land in the southern hills, and absorb more people.
Historically, corn was available in the country during the Wanli period, and sweet potatoes and potatoes came later, but they were already available in the 12th year of Chongzhen. However, there was no large-scale government organization of farming, and the Qing Dynasty later benefited in vain.
Shen Shuren has now joined forces with Zheng Chenggong and told them to find ways to introduce new varieties, expand the scale, and optimize breeding. This work is now somewhat promising, and some improved varieties have been obtained. The details will wait until he returns to the south to build a local area. Let’s talk about it later.
As long as we can get policies and invest in the improvement of areas such as the southern hills and wetlands that are not suitable for traditional agriculture, we can definitely tap into the potential. The resettlement of tens of thousands of people every year is nothing at all.
After hearing everything, Chongzhen was finally overjoyed and was ready to fully support Shen Tingyang's reforms.
He turned to Zhu Dadian with a cold face and asked scolding: "Zhu Qing, you said that Shen Qing 'kills but not buries', what do you think of the various 'burying methods' he has listed now? Do you still want to continue to oppose it?"
Zhu Dadian looked pale. He couldn't understand these professional topics at all, and he didn't know the feasibility of them.
He is already sixty years old. For an old man with such a rigid thinking, if you tell him about advanced technological productivity, you are completely talking to an ox.
He could only remain unchanged and adapt to all changes, and use the learning of saints to deal with it: "Your Majesty, I really don't understand those strange and cunning strategies, but I know a simple truth.
Since these people still have to find ways to find things to do when they change places, and the court still has to find ways to support them, then why not do more things instead of less things?
I only know that Sima Gong once said, "The wealth in the world is only limited to this amount. It is not in the people but in the officials." All those who claim that reforms can "enable the people to use the country without adding taxes" are actually competing with the people for profit. , they are all treacherous villains like Sang Hongyang and Wang Anshi.
They use techniques that simple and simple people cannot understand, and they try different methods. The final result is that nothing is accomplished, but the people who handle it are full of oil and grease!
Can the total wealth of the world be increased by using strange skills and tricks? Can money be created out of thin air? No! So no matter how fancy it is, it is just to enrich one's own pockets!"
Zhu Dadian could not debate science and technology issues with others, so he had to ask Sima Guang, the general spiritual leader respected by conservatives in the world since the Song Dynasty, to insist that "the total wealth of the world will not increase."
Chen Shuren listened next to him and finally couldn't help but sneer.
Regardless of the personal ethics of the Sima Guang faction and whether their political attitude is correct or not, the biggest fault of this faction is that they "fail to recognize that the progress of science and technology can increase the total wealth of society." That is already as wrong as it gets.
Science and technology are the primary productive forces!
Wealth in the world must rely on advances in science and engineering to make the cake bigger, rather than just thinking about dividing the cake using liberal arts methods.
After all, the Ming Dynasty was unable to sprout successful capital, which is inseparable from the fact that Confucianism did not believe in wealth creation, but only believed in wealth distribution.
Chen Shuren was very emotional and wanted to refute Zhu Dadian's fallacies.
It's a pity that now it's a prelude to the imperial court. He is just a secretary and a Hanlin editor responsible for drafting imperial edicts. He is not one of the parties in the debate, so he has to endure it for now.
Fortunately, Chongzhen, who was not far away, heard a slight and disdainful snort coming from the side. He followed the sound and noticed Chen Shuren.
Chongzhen also disliked Zhu Dadian's depressing and conservative tone, so he did not care about Shen Shuren's disrespect for the emperor and said fairly:
"Shen Lin, you are a Hanlin compiler, so your knowledge of classics and meanings is naturally good. But you want to comment, did the sage once say, 'There is only this amount of wealth in the world', and is Sima Guang right?"
Chen Shuren took a deep breath and roused himself without giving Zhu Dadian any face: "Your Majesty, I think what Sima Guang said is a big fallacy. Governor Zhu's citation of this fallacy is naturally also a big fallacy!"
Zhu Dadian was about to get angry when he heard this, but Chongzhen continued to support him: "Oh? I would like to hear the details."
Chen Shuren said without being humble or arrogant: "The wealth of the world has been increasing from ancient times to the present. Otherwise, in ancient times, why could the world only support millions of people? By the time of Pre-Qin, the population was less than 20 million.
From the Han and Tang Dynasties to 50 to 60 million, the Song Dynasty had hundreds of millions. As for the Ming Dynasty, it is hard to say because of sacrifices, seclusion, and the fact that some people are now controlled by thieves in the state capital. But based on common sense, it exceeds that of the Song Dynasty. It is as it should be.
Is it possible that the increase in population in the past dynasties was only due to land reclamation to increase the total number of acres? Even if it is, what we are doing today is to use the population that was originally wasted in water transportation for intensive farming and tapping the potential of field output. How can we say that the wealth of the world is only What about this number'?
Oxen were used for plowing in the Qin Dynasty, crop rotation was used in the Han Dynasty, curved-wheel plows were used in the Tang Dynasty, and Zhancheng rice was introduced in the Song Dynasty. From then on, rice was grown twice a year south of the Huaihe River, and so on.
It can be seen that the progress of craftsmanship can greatly increase the wealth of the world in a short period of time. If we do not admit this, the world will still be like the Qin Dynasty, which can only support 20 million people!"
The actual population in the books of the late Ming Dynasty was very low, so when Shen Shuren quoted it, this Dynasty did not specify it.
In the early Wanli period, Zhang Juzheng checked the population during his political reform, and found that there were only 70 million people. I don't know how many people were donated and hidden. Later data are even less trustworthy.
But by the end of Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty, the census number was more than 120 million. According to common sense, the peak population of the Ming Dynasty at the end of Wanli was close to 150 million. A dozen years before Apocalypse and Chongzhen, due to wars and disasters, it is now estimated to have dropped to One hundred and two hundred million.
In the next twenty years, there will be two huge wars and famines in the first ten years. The peasant army and the Qing army are clearing the land. It is estimated that the number will fall by another 20 to 30 million. In the next ten years, peace will be restored and there will be growth and reproduction. It is estimated that the number will rise again. Only after so many people came back did we have the census results from Shunzhi.
So in general, from the end of Wanli to the present, twenty to thirty million people have died in the world. If nothing changes in the future, so many more people will have to die before they can cross the bottom.
Chongzhen didn't care about verifying the specific population data. He just listened to the general idea. After listening to it, he very much agreed with Shen Shuren's statement.
Zhu Dadian is so pedantic! He doesn’t even understand this kind of truth!
Chongzhen thought for a while and finally decided to make a decision: "The matter of changing water transportation to sea has been decided. Starting from this year, the amount of grain transported through canals will be reduced by 20% every year and will be changed to sea routes. The reform will be completed within five years!"
Shen Tingyang, I will first promote you to the position of doctor of the Transportation Department of the Ministry of Household Affairs, to arrange for the resettlement of the people, to renovate the port, and to supervise the construction of new ships. This matter involves a lot, so you must handle it carefully, and there must be no mistakes in any of the three parties. !As long as you do a good job and ensure that the Cao residents resettled this year can make a proper living, I will naturally reward you heavily next year!
Zhu Dadian, since you can't figure out these things that require detailed accounting, I think you shouldn't worry too much. I'll give you one year to gradually hand over to An An the work that requires the calculation of money and grain accounts in your role as Governor of Water Transport. Lu governor Shi Kefa.
You will only retain your powers such as patrolling and military affairs, and assist Yang Sichang in containing the bandits fleeing eastward. I hope you will do your job well and make meritorious deeds, otherwise you will be severely punished!"
Although Chongzhen was mean and ungrateful, he would not dismiss a governor directly because of political disagreements.
Zhu Dadian only raised objections and did not cause any substantial harm. He would definitely be dissatisfied if he dismissed the courtiers directly.
Therefore, Chongzhen's solution was to retain his title, but deprive him of his real financial power, and transfer it to the nearby Shi Kefa.
In the future, Shi Kefa will cooperate with Shen Tingyang to gradually shift grain from the canal to sea transportation in batches at a rate of 20% per year.
The official position of Governor of Water Transport also has other powers, such as being responsible for the defense along the canal, and coordinating other local trivial matters. These still require stability, and allowing Zhu Dadian to transition slowly is also to prevent local instability.
But if Zhu Dadian gave up his financial power and only retained military power, and still couldn't get things done, then Chongzhen would have to impose additional severe punishments.
Historically, it was not until the end of the 14th year of Chongzhen that Zhu Dadian was impeached by Fang Shiliang and Censor Zheng Kunzhen due to corruption and inability to stop thieves. He was completely removed from office and his family was searched, and Shi Kefa replaced the Governor of Water Transport with full power.
Now, more than a year in advance, the financial power has been separately taken out and reduced. This butterfly effect is not too outrageous.
After Chongzhen finished his instructions, he asked Shen Shuren if he had drafted the edict.
Shen Shuren's writing was very neat, and he almost finished it in one go, and handed it over to the emperor for review. After Chongzhen nodded, he went to the cabinet to go through the process.
As the emperor and the Shen family and his son left, Zhu Dadian, who was stagnant in place, collapsed to the ground in despair.
He knew that no one would help him in this matter. The emperor did not directly deprive him of his official position, but only cut off his real power. Other Donglin civil servants who wanted to help him could not speak up.
…
That night, Shen Tingyang returned to his old residence in Beijing.
After working in the Ministry of Household Affairs for seven or eight years, I was finally promoted from chief officer, Yuanwailang, to doctor!
Although in a year of great calamity, when encountering such a gratifying and congratulatory event, Shen Tingyang still had to put on a show and prepare to entertain his close friends, bosses and colleagues from the household department in a few days.
Shen Shuren got off work later because he was on errands in Hanlin.
As soon as he got home, he was grabbed by his father and had a drink first, while discussing promotion and entertainment.
"The emperor's kindness is so great. We have also had a doctor in the Shen family. Lin'er, you returned to the capital a few months earlier than your father. You should be aware of the recent situation in the capital. There is still a vacancy in the post of Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. I wonder who your majesty will invite. What about the replacement? Is there any taboo in our family to entertain Shangguan?"
Shen Tingyang had just returned to the capital for two or three days, and he was definitely not as familiar with the current situation in official circles as his son, so he thought it would be better to be cautious.
In the officialdom, even if you have the emperor's appreciation, you still have to pay attention to your superiors' side. If you hug someone who is about to expire, it is easy to make detours.
Chen Shuren didn't care much about this. In his opinion, how long can these broken rules in the capital be maintained?
He replied bluntly: "I heard that Your Majesty saw that Jiang Dejing, the minister of household affairs, was diligent and capable, and originally wanted to promote him to minister. However, there have been some new changes recently, so this matter has been postponed.
In Huguang, Mr. Yang Ge is now fighting Zhang Xianzhong and Luo Rucai, but has not gained. I heard that Zuo Liangyu is using the self-respect of the army, and some of them are too big to lose. When executing Mr. Yang Ge's military orders, there are occasional delays, and he can always find excuses to let Yang go. Mr. Ge was too afraid to take him down.
Someone in the court secretly reported to His Majesty that Zuo Liangyu was a member of Hou Xun, the former Minister of Household Affairs who had been imprisoned for many years. He was threatening the court with the thought of raising a thief and wanted to force the court to let Hou Xun come back. Only then did your Majesty hesitate. Afraid of forcing Zuo Liangyu to take risks, I want to see the follow-up progress of the errands of the Ministry of Revenue and the thief affair in the south, and then decide on the candidate for the Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue."
After hearing this, Shen Tingyang couldn't help but frown: "Hou Xun, Qing Tan Ke'er! His talent may not even surpass that of Zhu Dadian. If he comes back, how can he be compared to Chiang Shilang?"
Besides, my father heard that you had a conflict with Gong Dingzi and Hou Fangyu when you were in Nanjing Imperial College and worshiped at the gate of Wumei Village. Aren't they with Zhu Dadian's nephew? "
Shen Tingyang heard his son mention this matter. It was caused by Shen Shuren when he was dealing with the issue of buying an official position after the provincial examination.
Fortunately, Shen Shuren was not afraid of doing business at that time. He bought a job from Zhu Dadian and gave it to him deliberately, hoping to frame his position as Susonghe Road Yamen District Officer. Later, he turned a waste into a treasure and used this position to make great contributions and was promoted.
Since Hou Xun and Zhu Dadian had common interests, no matter whether Hou Xun had a formal alliance with Zhu Dadian or not, Shen Tingyang would not be able to side with him.
As the future candidate for the position of Minister of Household Affairs, Shen Tingyang must stand firmly against his current boss, Jiang Dejing and Jiang Shilang!
Of course, this requires both positive and negative efforts.
First of all, he must achieve results in the household department and achieve better results with the support of Jiang Shilang.
On the other hand, I heard that after the incident in the capital, the son will be returned to the south by the emperor to serve as a local official, and may participate in military operations to contain the bandits. If the son does well in the south, he will cooperate with Mr. Yang Ge By turning the situation around so that Zuo Liangyu is no longer qualified to threaten the bandits, Chongzhen will no longer have to be threatened by Hou Xun.
When the time comes, Hou Xun and Zuo Liangyu will only die more miserably. Even if Zuo Liangyu has the strength to take down the enemy, Hou Xun will definitely be dead!
Shen Tingyang thought about it again and again and ordered: "Write a few posts for me. The banquet tomorrow will have Minister Jiang as the chief guest and some colleagues from the Ministry of Revenue. You can watch and write."