Emperor Ming Dynasty

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the weather in the north is getting cooler. Although the autumn tiger looks back from time to time, it has finally come to the season of high and refreshing autumn.

Tingtao Pavilion is built at a small waterfall, and the sound of pouring is non-stop day and night.

On the railing on the second floor, there is a Yiyang bamboo mat in Hunan. It is as thin as paper, as bright as jade, as flat as water, and as soft as silk.

Hubu Shangshu Wang Yingxiong knelt on the mat, feeling the coolness of the tribute, the sound of the catharsis next to his ears, and his face was covered with water mist, and he calmed down unconsciously.

"Drink tea!"

Suddenly, a cup of tea was placed in front of his eyes, and the emperor's appearance was magnified before his eyes.

In a few years, the emperor changed from a young one to a mature one, his eyes were like a stream of clear springs, making it impossible to see the depth.

The clean chin in the past has long since grown a short beard. A pair of long legs are sitting cross-legged, with a lazy face.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Wang Yingxiong came back to his senses, and he was not polite, and drank the tea in front of him in one gulp.

The emperor glanced at him and saw that his thighs were trembling, and he couldn't help saying: "Sit cross-legged just like you, it's hard to sit on your knees."

"Yes!"

Wang Yingxiong heaved a sigh of relief, and felt that his whole body was about to fall apart.

At this time, Wang Yingxiong was already sixty-four, and he had already reached the age of becoming an official, but firstly, he still felt that he could persevere, and secondly, the emperor did not want to break the balance of the court, so the position of minister was as stable as Mount Tai.

"Your Majesty, most of the summer tax in the south of the Yangtze River has been put into the warehouse, and only the inland identities such as Sichuan are still being transported. It will definitely arrive by the end of September."

Wang Yingxiong said with emotion: "How fast is the water transportation?"

This is true. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the transportation time limit for summer tax and autumn tax was only about three or four months.

That is to say, when the rice is ripe in June, the collection must be completed by the end of August, and then it will be transported to Beijing before the end of the year. Before that, it was carried out by the people (the grain length system), and later, after a whip, it was changed to an official movement.

But the most fundamental thing is smooth shipping.

Even in Guangdong, it only takes more than a month from south to north, which can be described as fast and fast.

For the imperial court, the rapid entry of a large amount of money into Beijing is enough to greatly improve the finances, and there must be food to eat without food.

"Water transportation is good, but the territory of Ming Dynasty is vast, and not all places are suitable for water transportation."

Zhu Yixi was noncommittal.

The smooth flow of sea transportation has long been known to all, but there are still some old stubborn people in the imperial court who are stubborn and say that sea transportation is not safe.

These words are pure fart.

However, in the north, the Yellow River is half disabled, and land transportation is the main thing.

If you want to get rich and build roads first, you will be familiar with it in later generations. How big is the territory controlled by the imperial court today depends on where the official road can go.

In this regard, Wang Yingxiong, Shangshu of the Ministry of Household Affairs, had something to say: "Last year alone, the imperial court spent millions of grains and 500,000 yuan of silver, and recruited more than [-] people. The official road from Shuntianfu to Datong, and up and down Hebei, was nearly a thousand miles long. It's all been repaired."

"Since the apocalypse, the world has been in turmoil, and the official roads have been in disrepair for a long time. If the entire northern land is repaired, it may cost tens of millions of dollars, and it will be impossible to complete the work in ten years."

On average, at least one million yuan is spent every year, which is definitely a big financial burden.

You must know that the northern provinces are still paying half the tax, and the big tomorrow is still supported by the south, and there are too many expenses.

The relocation of immigrants in Huguang and Henan alone costs more than one million a year, and blood transfusions are still ongoing.

Thinking of immigration, Wang Yingxiong suddenly realized that what he wanted to say was exactly this, and he said excitedly:

"Your Majesty, Jilin's recruiting is limited to five years, and then the land will be given back. In this way, women and children will follow the young men. It is cheaper to relocate than to move the family..."

The relocation of the imperial court is mandatory. The relocation of the whole family and the whole village is difficult to leave the homeland. The family is worth tens of thousands of dollars.

For example, how much the land and houses are worth, how the local government benefits private interests, and includes people who should not be relocated into the relocation, etc.

But recruitment is a selective migration, and people will go willingly.

"You mean to do it like Jilin Dusi?"

"The old minister thinks it should be so."

Wang Yingxiong's beard trembled, and he was very excited: "You can first recruit Ding Zhuang to join the army, and then farm on the spot for two or three years, and then reward him and allow him to move. What a joy."

"Can--"

The emperor feels good, and the idea of ​​recruiting soldiers and emigrating is indeed good.

Suddenly, inspiration exploded in his brain, and he blurted out: "Construction Corps."

"Your Majesty?" Wang Yingxiong cast a puzzled look.

"Actually, it's not just immigrants who can recruit soldiers, but also the construction of officialdom."

Zhu Yixi excitedly said: "Tens of thousands of people can be recruited to specialize in repairing official roads, filling ditches, erecting bridges and dams."

"For one thing, there are specialists in the arts, and these people will become more proficient and faster if they cooperate more."

"Secondly, it saves the people the hardship of corvée, and roads can be built all year round. Isn't it beautiful?"

"Wonderful." Wang Yingxiong praised: "It's like the soldiers of the Song Dynasty, which are cheaper and easier to use than the Beijing camp. They can also recruit people during natural disasters and avoid civil chaos. It's really good."

The next day, the Ministry of War received an order to go to the barren village to recruit engineers and soldiers. The monthly salary was only half that of the Beijing camp, but there was no need to fight.

What's more, in only five years, he can be discharged from the army and return to his hometown.

Soldiers who don't need to fight, such a rare thing, is immediately communicated to all parts of the world through the bulletin.

As the mouthpiece of the imperial court and a sharp weapon to control public opinion, the Daming Gazette is now published as a weekly magazine, with one issue being sold, and after being reproduced in various places, the total scale can reach a million.

In almost every county, there will be a bulletin.

There is no way, county governments in various places require subscriptions, and no one can delay parents and officials from realizing what they want.

For example, the bulletin promotes engineers, so recruiting engineers is a big deal. If you do well, you may not be promoted, and if you do poorly, you will definitely be dismissed.

The test method is not vegetarian.

This is the key for scholars to understand current affairs, and the folks also join in the fun. Every issue can set off waves of public opinion, which is an eye-opener.

However, for the emperor, the impact of the communiqué was doomed. It was the only remaining newspaper other than the military newspaper. It was authoritative and guiding. Even if tens of millions of copies were issued, he would not be surprised.

As for letting go of public opinion, blocking is worse than sparse, this is pure nonsense in feudal society.

Letting go of the newspaper is tantamount to making it regional. Once the newspaper becomes regional, the gentry will usurp the dominance of public opinion.

In the hands of the imperial power, the newspaper is only a means for the emperor to seize the position of public opinion, and uniqueness is the best.