In the complicated mood of everyone, Gan Qi slowly spoke: "In all dynasties, why is the country weak? All of you are people who have read the scriptures and history a lot, and you all have your own opinions when you think about such a question. If you think about what you think in your heart, it's not bad. Is it a military disaster? Is it royal restlessness? Or they are rebellious ministers and thieves, or they are great calamities. Whether the heavens are angry and people are resentful, whether they are chaotic ministers and thieves, whether they are strong or arrogant, whether they are corrupt and corrupt, all dynasties and dynasties have turned from prosperity to decline after all, and finally declined and collapsed. ”

Su Shi nodded: "Well, this makes sense, I was afraid that Dao Jian would argue with others, so with a few words, the argument was avoided a lot." ”

"Brother Gan is smart." Su Zhe praised.

Gan Qi said again: "The matter of the weakness of the country, and even the matter of the death of the country, just a few words have also been summarized. In other words, it is all caused by a crisis, or a political crisis, or a power crisis, or a military crisis. So how can we overcome the crisis of the country? In the past few hundred years, although the country has finally collapsed, but in the past few hundred years, there have been countless crises, and there are many methods. What I say today, in the final analysis, is the way to survive the crisis, the concentration of power and the finance of money. ”

"To say that the concentration of power, in fact, is the meaning of unity, in the face of the crisis, when people can make people united, all forces are in one place, everyone is working in one place, this is unity, it is also a concentration of power. Money and food are even simpler, and everything must be done with money and food, whether it is a political crisis or a military crisis, money and food are indispensable. Where there is great calamity, there will be great chaos, so how can it be stopped? Money and food are the easiest way, there is food and drink, and naturally there is no chaos. Strong enemy Koubian, the big war is about to start, dispatch the army, build equipment, and even more money and food. Do you think so? Gan Qi asked.

Ganchi paused and looked at the people present.

Unity and concentration of power, in this era, isn't it loyalty? Loyalty, that is, unity, Gan Qi said well, that is, the way of the sages. Money and food are a little fresh, but they are not so novel and avant-garde, and the reason is very simple, why do people rebel? Except for the era of Qin's harsh government, the vast majority of them were because of disasters, the land was gone, and if they didn't rebel or loot, how could they survive? That is, the problem of money and food.

In a war, not to mention, if the soldiers and horses are not moved, the grain and grass go first, or even if there is no war, whether the soldiers and horses can be raised well, whether they can train a strong army, whether they can have good ordnance and equipment, money and food are also one of the most important factors.

Gan Qi looked at the nodding appearance of everyone in the audience, and then said: "At the end of the Qin Dynasty, when the Han Dynasty was established, the registered population was about 130,000, but in more than a hundred years, by the end of the Western Han Dynasty, the registered population had skyrocketed to about 60 million, and the country was in chaos. When the Tang Dynasty opened the country, the registered population was about 25 million, and more than 100 years later, during the Tianbao period, the registered population skyrocketed to about 80 million. Why did all dynasties, when they were first established, flourish day by day, and why did the national strength become even greater when the population skyrocketed, and why did they fall into chaos and decline? Why is it that the more the population, the more chaos there is? On the contrary, the weaker the national strength? The more difficult it is to get through the crisis? ”

These two examples can be cited by Gan Qi, in fact, there are other examples that Gan Qi cannot cite at this time, such as the Northern Song Dynasty, more than a hundred years later, the population exceeded 100 million, but it was impossible to resist from other places, and civil strife broke out frequently. There is also the Ming Dynasty, during the founding of the country, the population was about 50 million, and by the end of the year, it had already exceeded 100 million, and then the country was also a foreign enemy to resist hard, and the internal strife directly forced the emperor to commit suicide.

On a macro level, isn't it more populous? The more productive? The stronger the country?

Gan Qi asked, and everyone in the audience fell into this question, why when the Han and Tang dynasties were founded, they instead ruled the country with martial arts, one destroyed the Huns for decades, and the other destroyed the Turks for decades. When the population skyrockets many times, but the country will be destroyed?

Everyone was thinking about the question that Ganchi asked, and no one was answering Ganqi's question.

Only Su Shi unconsciously walked out of the door of the backfield and replied to Gan Qi: "Dao Jian, such a question, I thought, is the scourge of erosion, corruption and pleasure." The country is strong and forgetful, does not know how to be prepared for danger in times of peace, only knows that there is no limit to pleasure, and there are many natural crises. ”

Gan Qi looked at Su Shi, nodded, and asked, "Then why is it difficult to get through the crisis after the crisis?" In the end, you can only watch the country slowly go to ruin? ”

Su Shi thought for a while and replied: "The emperor has done nothing, and the courtiers have done nothing, so it is difficult to turn the tide." ”

Gan Qi asked again: "What kind of action can you turn the tide?" What factors can turn the tide? ”

Su Shi really had the idea of communicating with Gan Qi, and replied: "Didn't Dao Jian already say it just now?" If we are united, we have money and food, and we can tide over the crisis. ”

Gan Qi nodded: "Yes, Brother Zizhan is also talented, this is not bad." Civil strife is mostly just a matter of money and food, and foreign enemies are actually also things of money and food. Therefore, what I want to say is why after the population skyrocketed, the imperial court had no money and no food? Just like my Great Song Dynasty, to this day, the population was about 30 million when the country was founded, and now the population is almost 10,000,000, and it is also full of flowers. On the contrary, the imperial court has also begun to run out of money and food, and it is unable to make ends meet. ”

This question frightened everyone in the audience, and Su Shi was also stunned, the Han Rebellion, the Tang Rebellion, the chaos and the decadence, the timing of the chaos is when the population skyrockets. Now in the Great Song Dynasty, when the population is skyrocketing, will there be chaos? Although Gan Qi did not say it, there was already this meaning in his words.

How can this teach people not to be surprised?

Gan Qi saw everyone's reaction, but said with a smile: "Everyone, think of danger in times of peace, Fan Wenzhenggong also said that the worries of the world are worried, and the joy of the world is happy. Our generation of scholars naturally have to be prepared for danger in times of peace, so that is the right way. Imagine it, why is it as strong as the Han and Tang Dynasties, but the difficulty is in crisis? This is the essence of statecraft that I am talking about today. ”

Gan Qi didn't want to talk to anyone about any specific ways of governing the country today, and those ways of governing the country have long been thoroughly talked about throughout the ages, how to be an emperor, how to govern, and how to be an official...... And so on, these wisdoms have already been summed up by the predecessors, and the wisdom of the predecessors will still be used for thousands of years in the future.

Today, Gan Qi is talking about population and crisis, and even crisis response and management.

Su Zhe had already come out of the backfield at this time and stood next to the podium, Gan Qi's words today were really too appalling, and the question of the connection between population and national strength raised by Gan Qi was really unprecedented.

"Please also ask Brother Dao Jian to quickly solve the puzzle, why is the population increasing, but the national strength is not as good as before, why is the population increasing, but chaos will arise?" Su Zhe asked, this question was not only a question in Su Zhe's heart, but also a question in the hearts of everyone in the audience.

Everyone is waiting for Gan Qi to solve his doubts, which is the essence of Gan Qi's so-called statecraft.