In the golden autumn and October of the eighteenth year of Chongzhen, many states and counties in Shandong, Henan and other places reported bumper harvests. This is really good news in an agricultural country, which makes the emperor and queen who live in Jinan quite happy. In those places where a bumper harvest is not reported, the harvest is basically flat, and there is little news of a bad harvest.

I think back to last year, almost half of the year was like winter, and the whole day was dark and gloomy. Now it is really the rejuvenation of the earth, and the sun and the moon are returning.

If you look further, since the twenty-third year of Wanli, there has been little news of a bumper harvest in the world. No one knows what this is for, it can only be attributed to the decline of the country's fortunes. And now that Shenjing has not been restored, Shandong and Henan have improved, so that no matter how stubborn people are, they can't help but waver: maybe it's really the East Palace Ying Tianshun people, and God finally gave Daming a second chance.

- Now we can only reduce man-made disasters, and real natural disasters may not be so easy to pass.

Zhu Cihong did not let his guard down because of this. Many people know about the Xiaoice River Period, but in fact, the Xiaoice River Period began in the Southern Song Dynasty, and the Daming reached its peak in this natural cycle.

The real fatal blow to Daming was the cessation of sunspots.

Starting from the twenty-third year of Wanli, the cycle is as long as seventy years.

Zhu Cihong once felt desperate because of this, even if it was more relaxed, starting from the twentieth year of Wanli, it would take twenty years to get through it now. However, judging from the situation of this year, last year should be the peak of the entire disaster period, and this year will start to stop losses, and it will be a prosperous era in another 20 years.

According to the original historical script, another twenty years will be during the Kangxi period of the Manchu Qing Dynasty...... I have to say that their cheap pick-up is really enviable, jealous and hateful.

"Your Highness, if you count the harvest of potatoes, millet and other miscellaneous grains in various places, there should not be a situation of starvation to death in the first-class area this year. Nor should there be famine and a sharp increase in food prices in the B region. Yao Tao saw the crown prince again. I am very happy in my heart, especially the various reports in my hand can be called good news.

Zhu Cihong first inspected Tianjin and encouraged the officers and men of the Second Division. He then went to sea at the port of Tianjin, disembarked at the port of Dengzhou, and inspected the prefectures all the way until the beginning of November before returning to Jinan. After four months of leaving. Zhu Cihong returned to Jinan again, and the first thing he did was to call the household department to report on the economic situation and listen to Yao Tao's report.

After listening to everything, Zhu Cihong asked again: "How is Zheng Zhilong's side?" Did he spit on the matter of the city's boss? ”

"Zhang Kentang, the governor of Fujian, recently went to the court and asked for the opening of the market, and said: Collect 4 million taels of Fujian for the use of the military, and Xu will pay it with tariffs." Yao Tao said.

"Zheng Zhilong is still stingy in the end, and he will bargain for a million taels." Zhu Cihong couldn't help but scoff, and then thought that this million taels was already ten times his wealth. I couldn't help but smile bitterly.

He said, "What does the cabinet say? ”

"Mr. Li thinks that this amount of money is already a lot." Yao Tao said: "The two old gentlemen, Wu and Sun, have only been back for a long time, and there is no news yet. Mr. Jiang is afraid that he will not be able to return for the time being, but judging from the correspondence of the Ministry of Industry, Mr. Jiang only needs silver. ”

"Ahem." Zhu Cihong coughed lightly, reminding Yao Tao of his respect for the ministers.

Yao Tao hurriedly restrained her smile and lowered her head.

"Four million taels of silver is indeed a lot, but it is nothing to Zheng Zhilong." Zhu Cihong said: "Reply to Fujian: Four million taels of cash must be counted and stored in the warehouse immediately, waiting for the call." Another one million taels. It can be offset by physical goods. Yao Tao, you have a list of scarce materials. Let Zheng Zhilong buy it. ”

"That's ...... price"

"Of course, the pricing power is the final word of the imperial court, what if Zheng Zhilong dares to sell me a rabbit for five taels of silver." When Zhu Cihong said this, he couldn't help but be a little displeased.

In order to ensure protein supplementation, Zhu Cihong instructed Shandong to carry out a rabbit breeding campaign. Rabbits have a mixed diet for animals, eating everything from alfalfa, wild vegetables, and rotten leaves. Fecundity is particularly strong, and there were no rabbits in Jiangsu and Zhejiang at first. A county magistrate surnamed Jin brought a pair of rabbits from Fujian, and by the time his term expired, Hangzhou was already full of rabbits.

As the hometown of rabbits, Zheng Zhilong of course contributed a group of rabbits with fat and long hair, but in the book, it is said that one of these rabbits is worth five taels of silver. Zhu Cihong also thought it was a rare and excellent variety. Who knew that Wu Qingchen revealed Zheng Zhilong's old background in the book: these rabbits were collected by the Zheng family's soldiers and people, and they didn't give any money at all.

Isn't this a copy of a certain chamberlain who offered three cents of silver snacks on the street and quoted thirty taels of silver to bluff Chongzhen?

With such a lesson from the past, Zhu Cihong certainly had to prevent Zheng Zhilong from buying a bunch of sky-high goods to offset the number.

"In addition, since Fujian is going to open a shipping company, Zhejiang, Shandong, Tianjin, and Guangzhou, all of which should be opened together." Zhu Cihong said.

Yao Tao couldn't help but laugh again.

The Ming Dynasty was not without a city. The official name is the Municipal Promotion, which is under the jurisdiction of the Provincial Political Envoy Division, and is the main official from the five products.

The provinces and cities set up and abandoned, abolished and set up, capricious, only Fujian City Bo Division from Wanli opened, has never been abolished.

It's a pity that Zheng Zhilong didn't read and didn't know the allusions of the Lu Daoguo Dynasty, so he was pitted by Zhang Kentang, the governor of Fujian. If Zhu Cihong was in Zheng Zhilong's position, he would not ask for instructions to open the city at all, and directly asked the Fujian Political Envoy Department to make up for the promotion of the city department.

Zhang Kentang is a native of Huating County, Songjiang Prefecture, a Jinshi in the fifth year of the Apocalypse, a fellow villager of Xu Guangqi, and a teacher of the great Confucian Zhu Shunshui...... Sure enough, he is old in political affairs, and he is invisible.

Zhu Cihong's impression of him instantly improved.

Now Fujian has taken the lead, and Shandong, Tianjin, and Guangdong have been stained with light, and it is to make wedding clothes for others.

"However, the jurisdiction of the Municipal Lifting Division cannot be placed in the provinces." Zhu Cihong said: "Submit to the cabinet for a vote: the imperial court will set up a general administration of municipal promotion, and directly govern the provinces and cities. All customs duties, first into the treasury, and then the debt is served. ”

"Your Highness, it is also a tax collection, isn't the City Department classified as the Tax Department?" Yao Tao asked again: "It doesn't belong to the household department?" ”

"The city department not only has the duty of taxation, but also has the purpose of guarding the country, and it is better to release it alone. However, in the future, the General Administration of the City Ship Promotion was jointly handled by the three departments of rites, households, and soldiers. ”

Yao Tao admires the crown prince's ability to be confident and grasp everything. Such a national event, ordinary people don't want to have a headache and insomnia, where can they figure it out? However, this young master talked eloquently, and took into account the rights and responsibilities of all parties when he raised his hand, and a bowl of water was served evenly.

"Therefore, it is necessary to let those wealthy merchants report their names, and the General Administration of the City will deliver the silver to each family on time every month." Zhu Cihong said: "Make it clear to their provinces, there can't be less than two hundred." ”

"Huh? Your Highness, if you have received the money, why do you have to put so many people here? Yao Tao was a little puzzled.

"Girl," Zhu Cihong was speechless when asked by Yao Tao, "If the family pays for it, wouldn't the city boss be his family?" There are many people, there are many people, and there are many mouths, make this plate bigger, Zheng Zhilong and other ground head snakes can't cover the sky with one hand? ”

"Your Highness is extremely worried!" Yao Tao admired.

"You still don't get it." Zhu Cihong looked at Yao Tao's gaze, shook his head and said, "After all, the City Department is the official office of the imperial court, how can you let the rich control the profits?" We are now poor and short-sighted, pointing at their silver, and we have to bow our heads. In the future, these rights and interests will eventually be recovered. You say, is it convenient to buy from one family, or from two hundred families? ”

Yao Tao was really stunned: Of course, it is convenient to buy it from a family! As long as you go up on a charge, won't you change hands and come back? These two hundred...... Then there will be a big prison.

Although Zhu Cihong couldn't hear Yao Tao's heart, she saw a deeper confusion in her eyes, so she had to explain: "After the country is peaceful, you still have to be lenient." There is so much money in the world, the court can't make enough money, and my Zhu family can't make enough money, instead of letting the rich family and the court deviate from morality, it's better to set rules and make money together, isn't it better? ”

Yao Tao suddenly said: "It is indeed as His Highness said." These days, the minister is often thinking about what His Royal Highness once said that the officials and gentry pay taxes together, and they don't know how to crack it. Shi Cai heard what His Royal Highness said, and the words 'make money together' are really the essence of it. In the past few days of being in charge of finance, Yao Tao also has a general idea of the country's economic operation. In addition, because we are in a period of war, we must grasp both the strong army and the people, and we have a deeper understanding of the costs required for economic development.

If you put it in simple terms, it is: if a rich family wants to make money, the world must first be peaceful; If the world wants to be peaceful, it must be guarded by strong soldiers. Who should pay for the soldiers? Only let the court pay for the soldiers, but the rich family made money but did not share the profits to the court, how can there be such a reason?

Only when the rich court has made money, can the world be peaceful and everyone have a good life. Before the Ming Dynasty, it was too rich to hide the people, so that the court was weak and the armament was wasted.

"But Your Highness, the minister has been thinking about it recently: I am afraid that there is a fixed amount of silver in this world......" Yao Tao hesitated.

"In a certain period of time and under certain technical conditions, there is a certain number of natural resources." Zhu Cihong said: "But social wealth will increase with people's creation and innovation. ”

Yao Tao seems to understand whether she understands or not. Not only does she believe that social wealth is a fixed value, but also many other household officials. It is precisely based on this biased understanding that Daming will be extremely sensitive to the issue of "competing with the people". Since Zhu Yuanzhang, he has vigorously practiced private ownership and distributed many state assets to private individuals, that is, "the people".

For more than 200 years, the lifeline of the country's economy was basically in the hands of private businessmen, and the imperial court could only collect land tax subsidies. As the largest silver inflow country in the world, the commercial tax of the Ming Dynasty actually existed in name only; As a year's iron output can reach the output of the whole of Europe in the next century, the Ming Dynasty's government-run iron factories have been eroded by private capital.

"Still don't get it?" Zhu Cihong took a sip of tea: "You go back and pick some people who are well-versed in current affairs, finish writing the "Economic Theory" with me, and then study it in detail." Now enter the palace with me, tell the queen mother about the good news in your hand, and maybe you can also receive a reward. ”

"Yes." Yao Tao then remembered that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince should enter the palace to ask for peace when he came back, so he hurriedly cleaned up and drove to the palace with the East Palace car. (To be continued......)

PS: Ask for a monthly pass ~~ Ask for a recommended ticket ~~~ Ask not to fall ~~~~~~~~~ the classified monthly pass list