"Or, only open the mountain, and still not let the ore be mined?"

After all, for ordinary people, mining or something is still too far away; What the people care about most is to have a full stomach.

For the powerful and powerful, it is the opposite: hunting and fishing, chopping wood and collecting wood, etc., there is no temptation at all.

Opening mountains and banning mines can not only serve the purpose of supporting the people, but also oppress the powerful and powerful nobles to make profits and oppose the central government, killing two birds with one stone.

Secretly making up his mind, Liu Hong raised his head and looked at the middle-aged man in front of him, who was pinching the corners of his sleeves crampedly, with a worried face.

The corners of his mouth were slightly curled, and Liu Hong tried his best to speak in the gentlest tone: "Ru..."

As soon as he spoke, the middle-aged man fell to the ground in a hurry, his words were chaotic and panicked: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the grass people deserve to die for their crimes, Your Majesty is atoning for your sins!" ”

looked frank and lenient, which made Liu Hong stunned for a moment, and then shook his head and laughed.

"I mean, who is your name, and who is you?"

Before Liu Hong finished speaking, the middle-aged man was already sweating profusely: "The people are from Hejiazhai in Chang'an, and their cheap name is Guangsu..."

Hearing this, Liu Hong nodded secretly - Guangsu, a rather simple and popular name, is the same as Ruonan and Fa Cai, who are almost rotten in later generations, and they all belong to the purest expression of their expectations by the common people: Guangsu, more corn.

Looking at the middle-aged man who called himself He Guangsu again, the black and white withered hair on the top of his head was tied up and fixed with a wooden hairpin, and the beard on his face seemed to have never been taken care of, looking messy and curly; The slightly darkened face is a little yellow and thin.

This should be the truest portrayal of the people at the bottom at this time: all the time and energy are focused on survival, and there is no time to care about the rest.

Looking at He Guangsu, Liu Hongyu glanced at Chai Wu, who was staring at his face, and probably knew what was going on.

With a gentle smile, Liu Hong ordered He Guangsu to get up, and asked softly: "In the past, Shaofu released grain, and your family could buy rations?" ”

Hearing this, He Guangsu's panicked face calmed down a little, and his tone became calmer: "Your Majesty is merciful, open the internal food to save the people from fire and water, and everyone calls Your Majesty the king of holy virtue!" ”

"The people are very fortunate to have bought four stones of corn."

As he spoke, He Guangsu had a happy smile on his face.

Liu Hong also smiled lightly and nodded: "That's fine." ”

After speaking, the words changed again, and his face was still kind and gentle: "Since there is surplus grain at home, why do you damage the mountains and forests privately?" ”

He Guangsu, whose emotions gradually calmed down, suddenly panicked, and hurriedly lowered his head: "Your Majesty spares your life..."

"Alas~ I didn't say anything, and I want to blame you!"

Forcibly interrupting He Guangsu's chatter and begging for mercy, Liu Hong took a breath and said a little seriously: "I was born in the deep palace and grew up in the hands of women, I don't know how happy, how bitter, and how sad the people are. ”

"The honest answer is: why is logging and deforestation?"

Raising his head apprehensively, he cautiously glanced at Liu Hong's appearance, He Guangsu hurriedly lowered his head again, and said calmly: "Your Majesty, the people have enough corn and four stones in the Shaofu Mansion, but there is not much money left at home. ”

"The little girl is nearly twenty-eight years old, and according to the system, it should be the age of marriage; However, the small people are poor, don't have money to buy dowries, and it is even more difficult to find relatives..."

As he spoke, He Guangsu's tone was choked: "There are only 30 acres of thin land in the small people's homes, and the output is no more than 100 stones of corn, which is enough for the family; There's no way to talk about accumulating wealth..."

"The little girl has no relatives to find, and the government is urging her very urgently, saying that if she doesn't marry again, she will be fined."

"The people have no other way but to take risks to cut down the mountain wood, and use firewood to pay the city for some copper coins in case of government fines..."

Listening to He Guangsu's desperate confession, Liu Hong, who originally wanted to use this as the beginning of the improved version of the 'Xu Minchi Shanze' order, was suddenly silent.

In the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, the world withered, and there was not one out of ten people; Under the population base, the state's tax revenue is not up to standard, and the state finances are not enough to maintain a large bureaucratic system, which has led to the central government's ability to control the local government for a long time.

In order to increase taxes and improve the country's financial situation, Liu Bang simply and directly ordered: A woman must marry when she reaches the age of fifteen, otherwise she will be fined!

This regulation naturally makes people get married early in order to escape the high 'late marriage fine', and then have crazy children in this era when there are no measures to avoid pregnancy.

With the continuous birth of children, the country's population base has surged, tax revenue has increased, and the national finance has been improved, but the burden on the people's families has become heavier and heavier.

——Just those 30 acres of land are still a lofty goal that most families can not reach!

When later generations studied the history of the Western Han Dynasty, this policy made Liu Hong entangled: if fertility is not encouraged, the country will be poor, and if it is encouraged, the people will become poorer and poorer, how is it good?

But now, after coming to this era in person and becoming the emperor, Liu Hong discovered that encouraging childbirth harms the people far more than that!

A family like He Guangsu has a small number of acres of land and grows only enough food to sustain their lives every year, and they have no financial resources to support the marriage of their daughters!

If you don't have the money to buy a dowry, you can only accept the penalty and obediently pay the government's fine; The fines originally set to encourage people to marry and have children early have become a mountain that further increases the burden on the people.

Even those families who were able to save money and wait for their daughters to marry in the future had to pay fines.

"Ahh It's hard to say..."

Secretly lamenting, Liu Hong suddenly felt that the burden on his shoulders was heavier.

In the final analysis, this situation arises because the whole country is in a state of poverty.

Whether to encourage childbearing or not is actually a multiple-choice question: whether to make the country poor or the people poor.

From this point of view, Liu Bang's choice is wise: only when the country becomes rich first can it lead the people to prosperity and strength; But if the people are rich, the country may fall into chaos.

But for Liu Hong, who has a broad vision spanning more than 2,000 years, there is a third option for this matter.

- Why do you want to do multiple-choice questions?

Only children do multiple-choice questions, and adults do!

In Liu Hong's view, the prosperity of the country is not at all in conflict with the prosperity of the people.

Why do we have to squeeze the people to make the country rich?

This was also the limitation of the feudal rulers: the main source of state revenue should be taxes.

However, as an aspiring young man in the 21st century, Liu Hong knows very well that if a regime is built on agricultural taxes, then the regime will never be able to get rid of poverty.

The best source of state finances is still commercial taxes!

Of course, using commercial taxes as a source of national finance requires sufficient commerce and a large handicraft industry, which requires a solid agricultural foundation.

Therefore, what Liu Hong needs to do next is very clear: farming.

Increase grain production, increase the arable land area, ensure that the people can eat enough, can raise their heads from the ridges, and engage in handicraft production in addition to farming.