Chapter 100: Choosing the Ocean

After Zhang Du left, Zhu Yuanzhang said: "You have done a good job, Taiping Iron Factory is on the right track, I read Zhang Du's report." The Taiping Iron Works will be able to supply enough steel to the Ministry of Industry, and it is estimated that all warehouses will be full next spring. Most of the wood was abandoned by iron, especially bows and arrows. The Ministry of Industry has reported that starting from this year, Daming's bows and arrows are all iron-tired bows. By the way, with pulleys, all arrows become iron arrows. This is something I didn't dare to think about before. ”

In fact, iron is easier to process than wood when it comes to processing long arrows.

It takes several processes to turn wood into an arrow shaft. But the iron arrow can be cast directly. Even if there are burrs in the casting, the craftsmen can ignore it and put it directly to the soldiers, who will polish it themselves.

It's just a matter of cost.

And steel production skyrocketed, and then there were not enough craftsmen. Using iron arrows instead of wooden arrows is more expensive in materials, but labor costs are saved.

The long arrows of the Great Ming Soldier changed from wooden arrows to iron arrows, and this was just the beginning.

It is also a microcosm of change.

He Xi said: "This is what a minister should do. ”

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Okay. Choosing where to go, have you thought about it? ”

He Xi said: "The minister has thought about it. ”

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Where? ”

He Xi said: "Songjiang Mansion." ”

Zhu Yuanzhang said; "Matsue? Shanghai? ”

"Exactly." He Xi said.

Zhu Yuanzhang asked with interest, "Why?" ”

He Xi said: "The ocean is the direction of the future, and the only world empire must be the overlord of the ocean." And marine management has always been a hundred years old. Chen felt that it was time to manage the ocean. ”

This is the result of He Xi's repeated thoughts.

He analyzed what Zhu Yuanzhang cared about the most? Come to think of it, I'm afraid it's a marine policy. Because, later generations commented on Zhu Yuanzhang and criticized and regretted the sea ban policy. And before He Xi, he also made the king overseas as the way out for the king of the Ming Dynasty.

In this way, how can Zhu Yuanzhang not care about the sea.

In addition, He Xi faced the actual dilemma he faced.

He always thought that he was going to build an industrial revolution in Daming. The biggest problem is the ideological or technical problem, but it was discovered that the Taiping Iron Works was really built. The biggest problem is capital.

It's money.

The Ming Dynasty paid taxes, more than 33 million stones a year. Among them, there are taxes paid by various localities, as well as grain paid by the military camps. The tax revenue is more than 3 million taels. This is the Ming Dynasty. Other aspects of income, raids, recovery of stolen goods, indiscriminate distribution of treasure money, etc., are not easy to calculate. Zhu Yuanzhang must have private money.

But there are not many of them.

The Taiping Iron Works is now counted, but it is only the first phase of the project.

It costs more than one million taels. Why was Zhu Yuanzhang particularly interested in minting money, and did not let them report on the output, production capacity, etc., mainly to report the problem of this money? It is because the other output of the Taiping Iron Works is just to improve the finished products for other departments of the imperial court, and there will be no money.

That's all there is to it.

At this point, He Xi already knew that more money would be made from the Ming Dynasty to run this kind of heavy industry. It's no longer possible.

The three elements of industrial revolution are technology, capital and resources.

If you had to subtract one of these three elements, it would be technology.

Because in general, throwing money is smashed out of technology.

If there is one more reduction, it is resources.

Because resources can be purchased, it is nothing more than a matter of cost.

The only thing that can't be missing is money.

Of course, money is not the same as capital, and the money invested in large-scale industrial production is capital. Otherwise it's just money.

So where to get money? The entire Ming Dynasty is only in the south of the Yangtze River. It is impossible to have much money anywhere else, after all, there have been many years of war and a hundred ruins are waiting to be rebuilt. In all parts of the Central Plains, there is no oil and water at all, and only Jiangnan has accumulation.

Where to go without going to Gangnam?

Of course, money can be asked not only inward, but also outward. Attracting foreign investment? Although in this era, there may not be any foreign capital, but the sea trade is also quite profitable.

In addition, the overseas expansion mentioned earlier. and so on.

How did He Xi feel that he should deal with the ocean, and he was worried that if he didn't do this thing, no one would want to do it.

In many things, He Xi is not irreplaceable. After all, at the beginning of the founding of the Ming Dynasty, the generals were like clouds, and the Wenchen side was weaker, but in fact, there were quite a few good seedlings. Such as tension. It's just that it's not as famous as the period generals.

But in some things, He Xi is really irreplaceable.

In marine exploration, there are many things, except for He Xi, others probably don't know what to do.

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Yes, these days, I am also thinking about where to put you, thinking about it, it is also the seaside." However, the place I chose was not Songjiang, but Ningbo. ”

He Xi said: "Ningbo? ”

Zhu Yuanzhang said; "Perhaps, in your time, Shanghai was the center of the southeast coast, but now, Ningbo is the center of HNA. Only Ningbo has everything you want, enough manpower, shipyards, sea guides, merchants and so on. ”

He Xi was stunned in his heart, this had broken his plan a little.

He went to Songjiang, not only for navigation, but also for Songjiang cotton.

Songjiang was originally the cotton cloth production center, in the Yuan Dynasty, there was a famous Huang Daopo to bring cotton textile technology to Songjiang, until the Ming Dynasty, cotton textile technology in Songjiang development is good. Of course, after the founding of the country, it was not as powerful as it was in the middle and late Ming Dynasty. However, He Xi is confident that he will contribute to the formation of Songjiang Textile Center.

The head office is located in the week.

Light industry is the most profitable.

It is enough to bring He Xi a source of capital for heavy industry.

Zhu Yuanzhang saw the hesitation in He Xi's heart, smiled faintly, and said, "It's okay if you want Songjiang first." Zhu Yuanzhang wrote a line on the imperial case: "Add secretary Cheng He Xi, supervise the imperial history, inspect the southeast coastal affairs, and inspect Songjiang and Ningbo." ”

immediately showed this line of words to He Xi.

He Xi looked at it and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty." ”

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled lightly, and then wrote two lines on this piece of paper: "And supervise the maritime affairs, and send the affairs of the Jingjiang King's domain." Give the king a flag, and the coastal sailors all listen to the order. It has the right to cut first and then play. ”

He Xi looked at it again, and he couldn't understand it.

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Do you know the war in the north? ”

He Xi said; "Of course I know."

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "After Wei Guogong came back from the north, he had several detailed discussions with me. His opinion, the situation in Monan, is deadlocked. Monan is too big, our army can only hold a few points, and the rest of the place is a place of two promises. It is estimated that in the future, the Tartars will cross the Hanhai Sea and plunder every year. Monan became a war zone. Unless the First World War breaks through the desert north. Otherwise, the situation will not change, even with a few big wins. ”

And directly over the Hanhai Sea, straight into the north of the desert. Too risky. The five-year battle of Hongwu is a lesson. ”

"Now that I think about it, I am also a little afraid, if it weren't for Xu Da, hundreds of thousands of elite troops, lost their division in Mobei, and the world would be troubled."

Zhu Yuanzhang remembered that at the beginning, the world was initially decided, and there were many hidden dangers in various places, so he intended to win the remnant yuan in one fell swoop, and declared the world. Consolidate the orthodoxy of the Ming Dynasty. But I never expected it to be like this. Fortunately, Xu Da withdrew the army. Otherwise, the world is unimaginable. Although Zhu Yuanzhang is confident that he will conquer the world again. But I'm afraid it will be messy for two or three years.

With this lesson, Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da, the two monarchs, don't want to take risks.

Therefore, he hopes to move to the northeast and first destroy the remnants of the Yuan, the so-called Liaoyang Province. That's what I mean. And if that's the case, sea freight is quite important. This matter, leave it to others, I don't worry, you can handle it. ”

He Xi secretly added a small reason for Zhu Yuanzhang in his heart, that is, the Jurchens are now in Liaodong. Zhu Yuanzhang has endured it for more than a year before he is ready to sharpen his knife. It's just that I don't know that when I destroyed Liaoyang Province, I wiped out the Jurchens. And the people who destroyed the Jurchen easily leveled Liaoyang Province.

It's all the same anyway.

He Xi said: "The minister understands. It's just that King Jingjiang ------"

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed and said, "The family is unfortunate. ”