After the appointment of officials is handled, there is time to communicate.

Wang Hongyu knew that Cao Xuequan was a rare all-round genius, and this time he was going to spend a few days talking with him to discuss the planning and construction of Guangxi.

After meeting with him, he first talked about the economic development of the Ming Dynasty, and then asked: "Mr. Neng Shi was born in Fujian, and has served in Sichuan and Guangxi for a long time, what is the good strategy for the current economic revitalization of the Ming Dynasty?" ”

"Although Xuequan has a low status, he is by no means a short-sighted person who is not in his position and does not seek his own politics, although most of them serve in Yuanyuan, but most of the time he lives in his hometown in Fuzhou, and he also knows a little about overseas affairs." Cao Xuequan replied.

"Over the years, relying on smuggling to get rich does not know how many, if the Ming Dynasty imitates the early opening of the sea, not only the coastal economy is developed, but also brings Western technology and ideas, now the Ming Dynasty is like a child closed in the courtyard of the deep house, only know the sky above the head."

Wang Hongyu was surprised when he heard this, Cao Xuequan saw the current situation of the Ming Dynasty so thoroughly, and there was a way to solve the predicament.

"So how does Mr. plan the development strategy of Guangxi?"

Cao Xuequan said: "Guangxi borders Guangdong, Hunan, Guizhou and Yunnan from east to west, borders the Beibu Gulf and the South China Sea in the south, and Vietnam in the southwest.

As long as Qinzhou and Lianzhou are assigned to Guangxi, Guangxi will be the most convenient passage to the sea in the southwest region, and will occupy an important position in the economic exchanges between China and Southeast Asia, and will also drive Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Huguang to become rich quickly. ”

"The current situation is caused by the historical siege of Guangxi by the Cantonese scholars, who have a say in the imperial court, and they regard Guangxi as a barbarian land."

Wang Hongyu said: "There are many ethnic minorities in the south of the Ming Dynasty, and if they are always treated as barbarians, it is tantamount to opposing the multi-ethnic unified world of the imperial court, which is not only not conducive to the economic development of the southwest, but also affects national unity." ”

"The purpose of recommending Cai Fuyi as the governor of Guangdong this time is to enhance the cooperation between Guangdong and Guangxi, lift the estrangement between Guangdong and Guangxi, and finally make the two Guangxi an inseparable whole that is interdependent."

"Not only that, the opening of the sea in the Ming Dynasty is a historical necessity, and closing the country can only make China far away from the Western powers."

Cao Xuequan added: "Xuequan is in Fujian, just from his hometown here for half a year, before Fujian and Guangdong scholars, officials in order to compete for overseas trade quarrels, Cai Fu after a little Guangdong, he is also a Fujian, this person in Guangdong can make a big difference." ”

"If Qinzhou and Lianzhou are assigned to Guangxi, how should Guangxi plan its development strategy?" Wang Hongyu asked.

Cao Xuequan seems to have already had a plan: "Use the construction of the military tun to widen and deepen the Qinjiang River section by section, and open up land routes from the Qinjiang River to Nanxiang, Nanxiang to Liuzhou, Liuzhou to Guilin, and Guilin to Huguang Yongzhou to the east of Nanning." ”

"Northeast waterway: dig the channel from Lingshan to Hengzhou, widen and deepen the waterway from Liuzhou to Guilin and Guilin to Huguang Yongzhou. Northwest Waterway: Youjiang River to Nanpan River, passing through Guohua Prefecture - Tianzhou - Shanglinsi - Yunnan Lujiangfu - Yunnan Yiliang. ”

"East Water Road: Nanning - Xunzhou - Wuzhou - Guangdong Deqing - Zhaoqing. This waterway leads directly to the sea, and Western goods come from this waterway, and Guangxi's specialties also go from this waterway. ”

"However, it has been harassed by Cantonese people, and customs fees, tolls, checkpoint fees, and protection fees are collected by water bandits. Many items are restricted, confiscated and fines are common. ”

Of these waterways, only the section from the Qinjiang River to the Yujiang River is an excavated canal, which needs to be measured because of the height difference, which requires Li Tiezhu to design a level according to the drawing drawn by Wang Hongyu.

Because we don't want to let the water of the Yujiang River flow into the sea through the Qinjiang River, and we can't let the water of the Qinjiang River flow to the Yujiang River, the terrain is measured in advance, and this section of the canal can only be horizontal, and the dam is designed to limit the loss of water from the Yujiang River.

The water of these dozens of miles of canal is like a reservoir, and the amount of water flowing in and out of the Qinjiang River remains unchanged, which is not difficult to do. But it was not easy for the productivity at that time.

Through Wang Hongyu's on-site inspection, it was found that the Qinjiang River basin has a large drop and serious soil erosion in the basin.

In this way, a lot of manual canals are dug and thousands of hectares of paddy fields can be created. This is a matter for the future, and there is no need to go into detail for the time being.

Cao Xuequan attaches great importance to the sinicization of ethnic minorities, encourages school-age children of ethnic minorities to go to school, runs night schools for ethnic minority adults, learns Chinese, and conducts professional skills training.

Cao Xuequan did not relax in the education and training of Hakka sons and Hakka children, and established specialized schools in various places in accordance with the requirements of Wang Hongyu's school, so that they could master various professional skills and participate in technical qualification examinations.

As long as they pass the technical qualification examination, they can find suitable jobs in various industries led by Wang Hongyu, and those with excellent grades can also enter the ranks of officials.

Through various means, he guided the sons of the world to participate in labor, to respect the working people, to learn from the working people with an open mind, and to be the descendants of the working people, and not to forget their roots.

He also very much supports Wang Hongyu that all ethnic groups are equal, and that workers, peasants, businessmen, and soldiers are the main body of the Ming Dynasty, and there is no distinction between high and low, only the social division of labor is different, and there is no distinction between classes to create value for the society.

Wang Hongyu did not tell Cao Xuequan that the author of "Theory of Production" was himself, and he only recommended the magazine that published "Theory of Production" to Cao Xuequan, and did not discuss the specific content and his own views with him.

For a scholar who has read a hundred schools of thought and written books, he will definitely not be imprisoned by Confucianism, and judging from Cao Xuequan's recent words and deeds, it is obvious that he has accepted the views of the "Theory of Production".

This is exactly the result that Wang Hongyu wants, and there is no doubt that Cao Xuequan will definitely have an important place left for him in Wang Hongyu's future system.

This time, accompanied by Cao Xuequan and other Guangxi officials, Wang Hongyu mainly inspected the two waterways to Huguang and Guangdong.

Xing'an County is located in the northeast of Guangxi, the birthplace of the Xiangjiang River and the Lijiang River, the "Xianggui Corridor" passes through from the northeast to the southwest, and the highest peak in South China - Mao'er Mountain stands in the northwest of the county.

Xin'an County is rich in underground mineral deposits, and has found more than a dozen kinds of iron, coal, lead, zinc, tungsten, antimony, uranium, manganese, copper, gold, barite, crystal stone, granite, high-quality limestone, etc., among which there are 16 varieties of marble.

Under the condition of protecting the environment, mining and smelting rare metals are necessary for the development of high technology, and such a concentrated rare metal base is unique.

Liuzhou is a basin in central Guangxi and a transportation hub connecting east, west, north and south, and should be built as a distribution center for commodities.

Wang Hongyu plans to build a port, warehouse, shipyard, hotel, and catering service industry here. Organize transport fleets and do a good job in economic and trade.

On the other hand, Wuzhou is the east gate of Guangxi, which has been called the "Three Rivers Confluence" since ancient times.

Wuzhou is rich in water resources, and Wuzhou City has a dense river network. There are more than 30 kinds of mineral resources, and it is planned to set up a gunpowder and explosives processing plant here.