Settled in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 305

"Shimin continued."

The saint said with a smile.

"Here."

King Qin continued: "If Xue Lang's policy can be implemented smoothly, it will benefit both the country and the people. However, the biggest problem is implementation. Whether it can be implemented smoothly is the test!"

The saint nodded in agreement.

The prince said: "What I worry about is execution! If one is not good, the country will be ruined and the family will be destroyed."

The faces of the father and son were all serious. They knew it was a good strategy, but how to implement it was indeed a big problem.

"Father!"

It was King Qin and Princess Pingyang who spoke together.The King of Qin smiled and said: "Sister is the boss, sister will speak first!"

Princess Pingyang didn't give in either. After nodding to her younger brother, she said, "Father, among the three strategies Xue Lang offered, the salt-making technique is the first, the paper-making is the middle, and the book-building is the last?"

Qin Wang smiled and said: "Sister, I think of a place with you."

It seems that what King Qin wants to say is similar to what Princess Pingyang said.

The sage Li Yuan glanced at the prince secretly, but there was no abnormal expression on his face, and said: "When Xue Lang offered his advice, he also said that these three strategies should be followed by the first two strategies, and the last one is to build the book."

The prince's eyes flickered, he gritted his teeth secretly, and insisted: "Even if the new salt-making technique and papermaking are implemented first, it will not be of much benefit to Jianchu, and it is not enough to shake the foundation of the gentry. Jianchu is still a dangerous thing."

Qin Wangdao: "The method of making salt written in Xue Lang's memorandum, we are all laymen, so I don't know if it will be successful. However, if you want to succeed, you must first choose a suitable site, and then try to make it. If this method Until the increased salt tax enters the national treasury, I estimate that it will take three years at the earliest, and it may be four or five years later. As for the method of papermaking, if the paper is first trial-produced, it should be faster than salt production. It is enough. But if we want to increase the scale, it will take a long time, which is not short. If there is this time as a buffer, the situation in the world should change by then, or it is unknown whether it can be implemented."

The prince snapped back and said: "It turns out that Erlang is not sure that he can implement it. Not to mention anything else, it will take a long time. It would be fine if this policy can be kept secret, but if it is leaked and known to the nobles of the family...the consequences will be disastrous."

Before King Qin could speak, the sage Li Yuan on the throne said in a deep voice: "Zuo Shi and You Shi have been strictly warned by me, and now only we, father and son, know about it."

The prince was stunned, and quickly said: "Son, I will keep it strictly confidential and keep my mouth shut."

The saint nodded, and said: "Even if there is no chance to implement the book in the end, with these three strategies alone, it can be seen that Xue Lang has far-sighted vision and is a true national scholar!"

This rating is very high!

The prince silently glanced at the saint's father without saying a word.The king of Qin was full of thought, and said: "Father, when I first established the dynasty and the world is not peaceful, we should implement the policy of light corvee and thin taxation, otherwise, the foundation of the country may be shaken. However, due to years of wars, the treasury is not rich. If it is the art of making salt If it can be achieved, the treasury can be enriched without swaying the policy of light corvee and thin taxation. This is the best policy!"

The sage stroked his beard with a smile and said, "Yes! This is the best part of this strategy! If it works, why worry about the treasury not being rich?"

If the treasury can really increase revenue...

A smile also appeared on the prince's face: "This is the purpose of the art of making salt, so what is the purpose of the art of making paper?"

Li Yuan didn't answer, but looked at King Qin: "Can Erlang and Jianling figure it out?"

Qin Wang shook his head: "I can't figure it out either."

Princess Pingyang, who had always been reticent, replied: "If you ask about the purpose of papermaking, my daughter knows a thing or two."

The saint said: "Since Jianling has thought it through, let's share it with Aye and your brother."

"Here."

Princess Pingyang said: "When Xue Lang first became an official in my mansion, I saw that he was very knowledgeable and could be different from ordinary people. Out of curiosity, I asked him. He once told me that in the foreign country where he grew up, no matter male or female, he went to school at an early age. , The subjects he studied are also different from my Tang Dynasty. During the chat, he once talked about a problem of the rate of knowledge popularization, and then talked about why the aristocratic family can be prominent for generations and last for a long time."

The prince asked: "What does the rate of knowledge popularization mean?"

Princess Pingyang repeated what Xue Lang explained to her that day, and she didn't miss a word, and it was obvious that Princess Pingyang was also a person who had a strong memory.

The sage, the crown prince, and the king of Qin understood it as soon as they heard it, and the king of Qin praised: "This word is quite clever."

The sage said: "How does Xue Lang talk about the fact that the aristocratic family has been prominent for generations?"

Princess Pingyang said: "Reporting to my father, Xue Lang once said that the popularization of knowledge and the enlightenment of people's wisdom, in addition to relying on the teaching of the master, the most basic thing is the dissemination of books. Books and knowledge, from Han to Jin, have gone through several years from the north to the south to the Sui Dynasty. In the dynasty, the vast majority were still in the hands of the aristocratic families. Compared with the many scholars of the aristocratic families, how many poor scholars are there? Even if they are lucky enough to go to school, the cost of pen, ink, paper and inkstone is still a big burden for poor families."

Hearing these words, the eyes of the father and son all brightened, Qin Wang said: "Father, there are poor scholars in Tiance's mansion. They once said that thirty old Mingjing, fifty young Jinshi. If you want to be successful in studying , if you don’t have to produce for many years, the poor family can’t afford it.”

Princess Pingyang agreed: "Xue Lang also said the same thing. If things go on like this, more and more books and knowledge will be concentrated in the hands of aristocratic families. Children from poor families have no way to study, so they can only do this from generation to generation. Naturally, it is impossible to find a way to govern the country. A group of illiterate people, officials can only be selected from the gentry, and the accumulation of officials from generation to generation will naturally have a family of prominent officials for many generations, and the government will inevitably be influenced by the aristocratic family."

Speaking of this, Princess Pingyang paused, then suddenly smiled and said: "Speaking of which, Xue Lang has a wonderful metaphor for this situation. He compared the power of the family and the country to a piece of cake. Xue Lang said that the cake is as big as it is. Everyone wants to eat, so the less people share, the better, and the more people, the less share."

The father and son almost gasped when they heard it, and the saint said with a solemn face: "This metaphor is quite good, and I feel suddenly enlightened after hearing it!"

The crown prince frowned, with a gloomy expression: "Even if we know that the aristocratic family has control over the government, the imperial court needs to employ people, and there are no talented people in the poor family. Only the aristocratic family can have talents. It's useless!"

The King of Qin was full of contemplation, and asked: "Sister, what can Xue Lang say to solve this situation?"

Princess Pingyang said: "Xue Lang said that the most direct way is to increase the circulation of books and knowledge, reduce the cost of book publishing, and provide more ways for the people to study. In this way, as time goes by, scholars from poor families will It will inevitably increase, but it can change the situation where the government is controlled by the family!"

Speaking of this, the father and son were stunned, and the King of Qin admired him: "It turns out that Xue Lang's intention of offering papermaking skills is here! Xue Lang is really a national scholar!"

Even the crown prince couldn't help being convinced at this moment, and nodded to express his agreement with King Qin's words, but his eyes were a little dim——

Why can't such talents be used by me!
(End of this chapter)