The Ming Dynasty took an unconventional approach

Chapter 1046

Pan Yun stared in shock at his plan, which was at least an inch high: "You've already written such a thick plan before even taking office?"

Xue Shao explained, "It wasn't written now. I had the idea when I was inspecting Jiangnan, but as an inspecting censor at the time, I couldn't say it out loud."

Pan Yun: "Can I take a look?"

Xue Shao handed her a scroll and said, "Actually, many of the ideas originated from you and Wang Cong and the others."

Pan Yun opened the scroll, which contained proposals to promote the development of industry and commerce. He started by examining the development of population, arable land, handicrafts, and commerce, and pointed out the necessity of developing industry and commerce.

At the same time, he also mentioned the need to protect agriculture, after all, food is the most important thing for people, and the people are the foundation of the country; therefore, agriculture is the foundation of the country.

However, national policies are difficult to implement in rural areas, and people are often short-sighted and driven by profit. If industry and commerce develop but agriculture is not protected, the gentry and landlords who control the vast majority of land will try every means to grow cash crops while neglecting grain cultivation. In just a few years, chaos will break out in the country.

Therefore, Xue Shao's suggestion was to reduce land tax and rent, with the ultimate goal of eliminating land tax and rent altogether.

This rent refers to the rent for public land.

Of course, the ultimate goal is to abolish land tax, and Xue Shao also stated in the article that this is not a goal that can be achieved in one or two years.

For industry and commerce to develop, it is necessary to provide some preferential treatment in commercial taxes, so commercial taxes should not be too heavy at the beginning.

With the reduction of land tax, there will be a transition period for the national finances, which Xue Shao estimates will last ten to twenty years.

He suggested that the poll tax and land tax be combined into one in the first five years of the next twenty years, so that there would be only one tax, which would be easier to pay and would also allow more people to engage in industry and commerce without being subject to land control.

Furthermore, the task of surveying the land and population of the entire country must be completed within these five years.

Xue Shao believed that in order to eliminate hidden land and households, and to increase fiscal revenue to support the reduction of land tax nationwide and the development of industry and commerce, officials and gentry should pay grain taxes together.

The only way to achieve equality for all people and for men and women is through education.

If the world were full of scholars, then the welfare benefits of tax and labor exemptions for those who pass the imperial examinations should no longer be provided. Instead, efforts should be made to attract scholars to take the imperial examinations and serve the country by increasing their salaries and providing additional allowances for ice and charcoal.

If this can be completed in five years, then in the next ten years, the Ming Dynasty can rely on a comprehensive survey of land, population, and taxes levied by officials and gentry to support major reforms, enabling the simultaneous development of industry, commerce, and agriculture.

Pan Yun silently finished reading the first volume, and Xue Shao handed her the second volume.

This is a proposal regarding education reform.

Xue Shao said, “Didn’t you say that all children in the world, regardless of gender, health or disability, should enter elementary school for ten years when they turn six? Ten years of hard study would be enough for them to learn a means to make a living. It is difficult for the Ming Dynasty to do this today, so I proposed five years in my memorial.”

He said, "Five years is enough time for them to learn common characters, become proficient in numerology, and mature a bit, so they won't be cheated when they go out to make a living."

Pan Yun said, "Hu Ying once mentioned it, but the cabinet rejected it because of the huge cost."

Xue Shao said, "The expenses are huge, so we need to thoroughly investigate the land, population, and officials and gentry to collect taxes together."

"What if that's still not enough?"

Xue Shao smiled and said, "There's never enough money in this world. If there isn't enough, we'll find a way. We'll have to endure hardship, but no matter how hard it is, we must develop education. Only when children have access to education can our Great Ming be considered strong. This is the first time in history that our Great Ming has achieved this. It will surely be remembered in history forever."

Pan Jun murmured, "You're right. People and eras that can do this will be remembered forever."

Pan Yun looked up at him seriously: "Have you thought this through? If you hand these things over, you might die."

"Even if I die, I will have no regrets!"

Pan Yun closed the book, lowered her eyes, and asked, "What's left?"

“It’s the business plan for the state-run salt and iron industry,” Xue Shao said, not minding that it was a secret, and showed it to her directly: “In addition, there are also plans for the state-run machinery workshop and the state-run textile workshop.”

Pan Yun rolled her eyes and clicked her tongue: "Now I finally understand why the emperor transferred you to the Ministry of Revenue."

This plan is incredibly profitable.

However, it remains to be seen how it will actually work in practice.

In these volumes of plans, Pan Yun saw a familiar world.

If all of this can be achieved, she wouldn't mind adding a few more strokes of color to make the future world even more vibrant and colorful.

Pan Yun placed the scroll on the table and said solemnly, "Xue Shao, I'm leaving tonight. I'm going out to stir up trouble. You must stay alive in the capital. You are an excellent observer of the atmosphere. If you sense any danger, you must notify me. Even if you die, you must live."

Xue Shao raised an eyebrow.

Pan Yun said, "Because your very existence is a tremendous asset to the Ming Dynasty."

Xue Shao chuckled and nodded, saying, "Alright, if I'm about to die, I'll definitely tell you."

Pan Yun left him a safety talisman drawn with her own blood, which he was to carry with him at all times. She also gave him a communication talisman so that he could contact her at any time.

Pan Jun: "Once I find the materials, I will carve a Spirit Communication Device for you. Now that your cultivation has increased and you have Yuan Power in your body, you can use the Spirit Version of the Spirit Communication Device."

Xue Shao was very interested in this and asked, "What materials are needed?"

“Jade is naturally the best, or at least wood that contains spiritual energy,” Pan Jun said. “I’ll have to find it myself.”

Xue Shao was relatively poor, and after he thought about what he was going to do next, he became estranged from his father, brothers, and uncles.

He's currently renting a place, a government-subsidized apartment. Housing prices in the capital are too high; with his salary, he'd have to work for another 86 years to afford a house in the area he's renting now.

Therefore, Xue Shao decisively rented a place to live.

Hearing that he needed jade, he rummaged through his chest and handed over his savings to Pan Yun: "It's not much, you can buy whatever you want. If it's not enough, you can pay me back later when I've saved some up."

Pan Yun accepted the box without hesitation, opened it, glanced inside, and asked, "You've only been an official in the capital for nine months, where did you get so much money?"

Xue Shao: "Thanks to the Imperial Preceptor, after you survived your tribulation at Coal Mountain, everyone in the court knew that I could observe qi and was also knowledgeable in metaphysics. So everyone liked to ask me to tell them things, and I earned some extra money. In addition, there are the Imperial Academy and various academies in the capital, so I can not only write articles for people, but also critique them."

In short, Xue Shao can make money anytime he wants.

His salary was just the least noticeable of his many sources of income.

He lacked the arrogance of ordinary scholars and the haughtiness of officials. Apart from refusing to do anything illegal, he would readily engage in any business that could make money.

I save part of the money I earn and use the rest to help others.

Moreover, his assistance was completely irregular; sometimes he would have Xi Jin buy grain at the city gate and distribute it to refugees who could not enter the city.
Sometimes I would buy steamed buns or dumplings on the street and give them to beggars;

Sometimes it was to provide financial assistance to impoverished students stranded in the capital, or to young children who had no school to attend.

Because he never publicized his name, and he would donate money to orphanages managed by the imperial court, or donate grain to Taoist temples and Buddhist monasteries, so that the Taoist monks could help the common people, the officials who wanted to find fault with him and say that he was trying to win the hearts of the people had no way to deal with him.

Unlike those who would publicize the names Pan Jun or Pan Sanzhu to everyone after doing a good deed, Xue Shao was a model of doing good deeds anonymously; he did them quietly.

When he was inspecting Jiangnan, Pan Yun followed behind him, wishing he could mention his name whenever he did a good deed, so she could bask in his good karma.

But thinking about it, I decided against it. After all, it wasn't mine, and claiming it without permission would only diminish my good deeds.

Pan Yun glanced at his shiny forehead, sighed, patted his shoulder, and said earnestly, "Brother, we are not only on the same path, but also in the same boat. I'm telling you this: the reform policies you've written are excellent, but you must proceed slowly and deliberately. Good or bad is just a matter of a single thought."

Xue Shao nodded: "I understand!"

Pan Yun understood, exchanged a glance with him, and then left.

Since they share the same goal, she needs to speed things up to lay a solid foundation for the reform.

That same evening, Pan Yun brought An Chen's small team with her, and once they arrived in Hamiwei, they left the team and a batch of supplies there.

She quickly selected a base station location, then fenced off a large area of ​​land, handed the completed blueprints to An Chen, and instructed him to lead troops to build it.

That's right, An Chen's mission was to build base stations and establish the entire northern intelligence network.

The Ministry of War had already equipped each of the thousand-household units with telegraphs and telegraph operators. Now, only the territories outside the Great Wall that were not actually controlled by the Ming Dynasty did not have telegraphs.

Pan Yun's mission was to deliver telegraph machines to the intelligence personnel who had fallen behind and to train them in how to send telegrams.

Before the trip, Yu Qian, the Minister of War, specially found out the names and addresses of those people, wrote them down in a secret letter, and gave it to Pan Yun. He personally watched her memorize it before burning the letter.

So apart from Pan Yun, even An Chen didn't know any specific information about those people.

However, there were also several spies from the Northern Garrison Command outside, and they also gave the list to Pan Yun.

Just before Pan Yun was about to set off, her father, Pan Hong, came to see her on behalf of the Court of State Ceremonial.

Isn't it amazing that the Court of State Ceremonial has its own spies outside?

Pan Yun carried three lists on his back. When he turned around, he saw Cheng Jing, the chief eunuch beside the emperor, and couldn't help but ask, "Does your Eastern Depot also have its own spies?"

Cheng Jing paused for a moment before saying, "Your Excellency is wise. The Eastern Depot does have some spies, but they only reach as far as the border towns and never go beyond the Great Wall."

Pan Yun frowned: "Your Eastern Depot is a bit incompetent."

Cheng Jing: ...So, do you want the Eastern Depot to have spies, or do you not?

Cheng Jing muttered to himself, but his face was full of ingratiating smiles.

He was there on behalf of the emperor to deliver gifts to Pan Yun.

Gold and silver, tray after tray, "all from His Majesty's private treasury. His Majesty thought that the Imperial Advisor would need money while traveling, so he sent me to deliver two trays of gold and silver to you."

Pan Yun happily accepted it.

So when they arrived in Hami, Pan Yun was exceptionally generous, leaving An Chen a large sum of money with a wave of his hand.

Since she had agreed that the base station was donated by her, it was naturally all paid for with her own money.

Pan Yun was generous, and Miao Zhen and the other two also became extravagant, spending two days shopping in Hamiwei.

Everything here is so cheap, it's really too cheap. The three of them wanted to buy everything they saw, especially Miaohe and Tao Yanbai, who became completely engrossed in shopping.

Gems, spices, and horses.

Miaohe followed the fragrance and came over. When she saw a batch of even better spices, she exclaimed "Wow!" and ran forward to buy more, but was stopped by Anchen who had arrived.

The veins on his forehead throbbed, and he couldn't help but pull the three of them aside and whisper, "Why did you buy so many spices?"

Miaohe's eyes sparkled as she whispered, "The price of spices here is five times lower than in the capital. That means if I take them from here to the capital, I can make five times the money in one go!"

She has a jade space, and her junior uncle can fly, so transportation costs are almost zero. How much money can they make?

An Chen lowered his voice: "You're not going back to the capital, you're going to the border region next, the border region!"

"We'll have to go back to the capital eventually."

An Chen: "Aren't the spices and gems from outside the pass, especially the Western Regions, cheaper than those from Hamiwei?"

Miaohe was taken aback: "Oh right, I forgot."

Tao Yanbai squeezed in and said, "Then let's not buy spices, junior sister. Let's go buy horses. I just saw two very beautiful horses and asked about the price. They're quite cheap."

Miaohe's eyes lit up, and she was about to leave with Tao Yanbai, but An Chen pulled her back with one hand on each arm, saying helplessly, "Horses outside the pass are better and cheaper; you can buy them with cloth!"

Tao Yanbai & Miao He: "Oh, right~~"

An Chen: "When are you guys leaving? No, where are the Imperial Preceptor and Daoist Miaozhen? What did they do, leaving you behind?"

Pan Yun and Miao Zhen explored Hamiwei thoroughly and gained a general understanding of its situation.

Hamiwei is a border town, but unlike important border towns like Datong, which are frequently invaded, it is protected by the Altai Mountains to the north, making it difficult for the Oirat cavalry to make large-scale southward advances. In addition, the relationship between the Ming Dynasty and Yilibali has been relatively good in recent years, so Hamiwei is rarely affected by war.

Peace has always been the foundation of economic development.

The imperial court stationed troops here, bringing a large number of military households to the area. At the same time, it opened up trade markets, not only allowing the tribes of Yilibali to come and exchange goods, but also welcoming caravans from the north, including nomadic herders and merchants from the Oirat and Tatar regions.

Therefore, border trade is very developed here, even more so than in Datong.

You can even see Persian merchants here, who would transit through here before continuing eastward to the capital or the Jiangnan region.
They would also sell their goods here to Shanxi and Zhejiang merchants who came here to do business, and then buy porcelain and cloth from them before returning home.

Indeed, the largest number of merchants in Hamiwei were from Shanxi, followed by Zhejiang.

Today, the Hexi Corridor is still under the control of the Ming Dynasty, so many merchants come here. They only need to deal with bandits, not foreign enemies from the north.

Pan Yun was very satisfied with the situation in Hamiwei; it was exactly what she wanted.

Hami is peaceful enough for its base stations to be secure enough.

Pan Yun left An Chen a radio so that he could contact her if needed. They would turn on the radio every night at 9 PM.

An Chen could only watch them leave helplessly.

Pan Yun and his group flew to Tieliangguti in one night.

(End of this chapter)