Wuhan, Gongfu.

The content of the reports of the states and counties was quietly placed on the desk, and Zhuge Liang wrote on the towel with a pen.

"Stone mill?"

"Don't produce wheat?"

"The southerners have no habit of eating wheat rice?"

"The people don't know the techniques of wheat farming?"

Zhuge Liang integrated the problem according to the official documents reported by the assassins of various states, and copied them on the documents.

"Ji Chang?"

"The servant is here!" Ma Liang responded.

Zhuge Liang put aside his pen and asked: "Ji Chang went out to inspect Jingchu County and visit local officials, what is the difference in opinion?" ”

Ma Liang pondered for a while and said: "This national policy is beneficial to the country and the people. It is difficult to implement it today, not because the wheat cannot be eaten, but because the people do not know the benefits of the wheat stay. In a good opinion, I want to persuade the people to practice rice and wheat cultivation extensively, and let the people know the benefits of living in wheat. ”

"As the ancients said, the world is bustling, and it is all for profit; The world is crowded, all for profit. If there is any profit, the people will plough it with pleasure. ”

Zhuge Liang smiled and asked, "Ji Chang can have a strategic pair?" ”

Ma Liang shook his head and said, "Shu Liang is a shallow learner, and he doesn't have a detailed understanding of it. ”

Zhuge Liang stood up with a fan and said, "If the tax is changed, how about collecting eight liters of rice from the field rent and replacing it with eight liters of wheat and rice?" ”

Ma Liang frowned slightly and said, "Changing rice to wheat is afraid that the government will suffer." The government collects wheat and supplies it to the sergeants. Most of the soldiers are southerners, how can they be willing to eat wheat and rice? ”

When a soldier eats grain, how can he eat coarse grain like wheat rice?

Most of them eat rice rice, so as to ensure the combat effectiveness of the sergeants. Forcibly let the sergeant eat wheat rice, with resentment in his heart and low morale, how can he fight with all his heart.

For example, in the Battle of Qi and Liang, the Liang army of the Southern Dynasty was demoralized because they ate on wheat crumbs. Xiao Yan hurriedly adjusted the rice, and the army's morale was greatly boosted, so he defeated the Qi army.

Therefore, the wheat rice was collected as a tax, and Ma Liang was afraid that the soldiers would not want to eat it.

"Haha!"

Zhuge Liang stroked the feather fan and said with a smile: "Don't worry about Ji Chang, Liang has a way to deal with it." ”

As he spoke, Zhuge Liang handed the towel on the desk to Ma Liang and said, "Ji Chang, copy five copies of this article and send it to Huo Du, Pang Lingjun, Liu Shangshu, Fa Hanchang, Gu Zhizhongjun, and ask them to come here to discuss the promotion of the method of rice and wheat rotation." ”

"No!"

After Huo Jun received the towel and silk, he handed over the military affairs to his subordinates and went to the meeting.

Zhuge Liang greeted everyone at the door, and after greeting each other, everyone sat down one after another.

Six people sat on the ground on the left and right, flipping through the difficult problems of promoting rice and wheat rotation.

Zhuge Liang cleared his throat and said: "The southerners reclaim the paddy fields, there are upper, middle and lower fields, compared with the average yield, each mu can harvest more than three stones of rice, this spring ploughing and autumn harvest time." If you plough the wheat in the autumn and harvest it in the spring, you will see it in the light and cultivate it diligently, even if there is no grain of three stones, there will be two stones of wheat grain. ”

"Two harvests a year, two wins in the Central Plains and three harvests. Therefore, the method of rice and wheat rotation can be popularized in all states and counties, and it is not possible to say that every household cultivates rice and wheat, but if 100,000 hectares of fertile land can be cultivated and wheat, at least 10 million stone of grain can be increased every year."

"Sergeants have a monthly eclipse of two stones, and a year of twenty-four stones. Tens of millions of stones of food are enough to feed our soldiers for nearly three years. The method of rice and wheat rotation is the great policy of the country, if it can be achieved, the treasury will be full, and the army will not be trapped by grain and grass. ”

Is 100,000 hectares of fertile land too much?

In the Han Dynasty, one hectare of land was 50 acres, and 100,000 hectares of land was about 5 million acres.

How many fields could a county have in the Han Dynasty?

Taking Donghai County in Xuzhou as an example, there are about 500,000 hectares of mature fields. That is to say, one-fifth of Donghai County's wheat will basically be able to complete Zhuge Liang's goal.

How much labor is needed to plant 5 million acres of land?

According to the unit of cultivating 50 acres of land per household, it will require 100,000 households. That is to say, at least 100,000 households should be mobilized to collectively plant wheat and implement a plan to increase grain production by a large margin.

These things that Zhuge Liang said are well known to everyone present.

Zhuge Liang pointed to the towel and said: "However, the people in the south do not like the things of wheat, and they are not allowed to cultivate. Now if you want the people of the south to farm, you must be tempted. Liang Yu quasi-rice and wheat exchange, the field rent is eight liters, and the people can pay rice and wheat rice. What do you think? ”

"Rice and wheat swaps?"

Pang Tong pondered for a while and said: "Rice, the people of Wu Chu are very happy; Sumai is not liked by the people of Wu Chu. Now the rice is left for their own consumption, and the people will be willing to grow wheat and live wheat for the purpose of paying taxes. ”

Zhuge Liang tried to use the government's collection of wheat as an administrative means to stimulate the private sector to plant winter wheat widely in autumn and winter, and when it matured in spring, it was left until summer and autumn to pay taxes to the government.

In this way, the people can keep the rice that they paid the rent for their own use. In this way, it is profitable to grow wheat and will inevitably stimulate the people to plant winter wheat.

After a pause, Pang Tong threw out the same question as Ma Liang and said, "The government collects the wheat, won't it let my sergeants eat and stay wheat?" ”

"Kong Ming!"

Pang Tong looked at Zhuge Liang and said seriously: "Kong Ming wants to promote the heart of Su Mai, and Tong can understand it, but now he should focus on the sergeant." On the whole, the exchange of rice and wheat is feasible, but the amount of wheat paid by each household is limited to ensure the normal supply of sergeants. ”

Zhuge Liang did not answer, but asked Fa Zheng and said: "Xiaozhi is from Guanzhong, and he eats and lodging wheat, what is his opinion?" ”

Fa Zheng stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Wheat rice is hard to eat, if it can be ground into flour and made into flour, the sergeant will carry it and eat it." Boiling water and boiling it is similar to steaming rice today. ”

Steamed rice, one of the ways to eat rice. It can be dried, carried when going out, boiled in hot water, and can be eaten, which is similar to the self-heating rice of later generations, so the southerners often use it as military food for war.

Hu cake, made from wheat. It can also be eaten from afar, the cake is too hard, and it can be eaten by soaking in some water.

"Exactly!"

Zhuge Liang stroked the feather fan and said: "When the lord fought in the Central Plains, his sergeants often ate hu cakes for food. When Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, he liked to eat Hu cakes, and many people in Beijing followed it. Huo Du has been marching and fighting for many years, I don't know what his opinion is? ”

Huo Jun thought for a long time and said, "It may not be feasible to replace steamed rice with Hu cakes. However, in Jun's view, it can be gradual, and the cake and rice are replaced, so as to observe the change of the sergeant's speech. Even if it is not a substitute for steamed rice, sergeants can still eat Hu cakes when they are resting. ”

After a pause, Huo Jun reminded: "However, to make Hu cakes from wheat, stone grinding is indispensable. The government collects wheat, and when it is widely placed in stone mills, it grinds wheat. In the view of Jun, in the places where the water flow is turbulent in each county, water can be used to drive stones, and it is thought that wheat is grinded. ”

It may be difficult for later generations to understand why stone grinding objects can be mentioned repeatedly.

Without it, without a stone mill, it is difficult to make wheat into bread.

At the same time, the process of stone grinding is not low, which contains the skills of craftsmen, if the grinding noodle is not good, it will seriously affect the taste.

During the Han and Tang dynasties, in the Central Plains, mastering the stone mill was a necessity for the scholars and the strong. It is hard to imagine that the famous Taiping princess of the Tang Dynasty was so rich and noble that she would snatch the stone mill from the temple.

The case of Princess Taiping snatching the stone mill was punished by Li Yuanhong, who was the head of Yongzhou at the time, Li Yuanhong was not afraid of power, and the stone mill was sentenced to belong to the temple, and the case was called the 'Nanshan Iron Case', and Li Yuanhong also became a famous minister in the Tang Dynasty in the future.

Although the stone mill is small, it is an important driving force for wheat to become the staple food of the Han people.

The weakening of the Kwantung scholars, the rise of the Kwantung scholars, the southward shift of the economic center of gravity, and the changes in Chinese history are often pieced together by small things, which ultimately make the wheels of history roll forward.

How difficult it would be to think that by proposing a certain theory and innovating a certain system, you can change the progress of mankind by yourself!

Zhuge Liang bowed slightly, and said in agreement: "What Huo Du said is extremely true, although the stone mill is small, it is the top priority of cake making. For example, among the Qingxu clan, anyone who can master the stone mill family is often a prominent family. Today, the wheat is harvested, and the official places a stone mill to grind wheat. ”

Gu Yong, who had few words, said: "Building a stone mill is quite labor-intensive; Grinding the wheat also requires manpower. In Yongzhi's view, harvesting eight liters of rice per mu can allow the people to take a bucket of wheat. Four liters of rice can make the people pay five liters of wheat. ”

"This should be an alternative tax hike!" Zhuge Liang frowned and said.

Gu Yong smiled and said: "According to the words of the military advisor, if the wheat is harvested in the spring and the rice is harvested in the summer, the people's yield per mu will increase greatly, and at least dozens of stone grains can be added. Increasing the rent by only two litres of wheat is also beneficial to the people. If you don't pay the rent with wheat and pay the rent with rice, how can you raise the tax? ”

"Hmm!"

Zhuge Liang stroked the feather fan and thought about Gu Yong's suggestion.

Fa Zheng changed his comfortable posture and said, "Yuan's sigh is not unreasonable. If the wheat is promoted, where does the wheat seed come from? ”

"Only the local counties lent wheat seeds to the people and let them cultivate them. If the scholars borrow seeds, they are afraid that there will be usury, which will cause hardship to the people. The promotion of wheat accommodation has a lot of manpower and material resources, and there is a lot of loss, so how can it not increase the land rent. ”

"That's it!"

Zhuge Liang stopped the movement in his hand and said: "In this case, let the king reissue the tax edict, and those who say wheat should pay taxes, one liter should be overcharged, four liters of rice, and five liters of wheat; Eight liters of rice, one bucket of wheat. ”

"Yes!"

Zhuge Liang looked around at everyone and asked, "Is there a mistake in planting wheat today?" ”

"There's a mistake!"

Liu Ba, who was sitting at the end, said: "Since Baju in Wuhan, he has recently found that the price of wheat in the market has risen, and there must be businessmen and scholars who see the government to persuade them to plant wheat, so they want to take the opportunity to buy it, so as to sell it to the people at a high price and make a profit from it." ”

"Kong Ming, in order not to hurt the farmers and facilitate the promotion of the wheat, let the local counties lend the wheat." Fa Zheng said: "If you lend the wheat, you may also be able to collect the interest rate difference to increase the treasury." ”

"No, if you lend the wheat, when you let the county be interest-free, how can you collect the interest difference?"

Pang Tong resolutely vetoed it and said: "Filial piety, officials are greedy, they only know the orders of their superiors, and they rarely cherish the people." What about collecting interest differences, and officials forcing the people to borrow? Wouldn't it harm the reputation of the king, nor would it damage the original intention of my benevolent government? ”

Top politicians checked each other's omissions and filled in the gaps, and Huo Jun was quite amazed.

The interest rate difference of lending wheat seems to be able to make profits for the government, but when it is implemented in the local government, with assessment indicators, it will inevitably become a compulsory loan of wheat. For example, Wang Anshi's green seedling method is also the original intention. However, when they arrived at the local level, the officials forcibly let the people lend the green seedlings, which eventually became a bad government.

"Zichu, you can see it!" Zhuge Liang asked Liu Ba to speak.

Liu Ba pondered for a while and said: "In order to promote wheat farming, wheat seeds should be lent interest-free, so that it is difficult for the scholars and heroes to make profits." The central treasury of Ranbas is full of rice, but there is little wheat. ”

"In Israel's opinion, an order will be issued in the near future for the exchange of rice and wheat for rent. Today, the upper plan collects the wheat from all over the country, and the good life is kept untouched. In the spring of next year, there will be a bumper harvest of wheat, which can allow the people to collect taxes in advance. In the summer and autumn, all the wheat in the treasury was cleared out, and the rent-free rent was given to the people everywhere. ”

After a pause, Liu Ba said: "If there is a shortage of wheat in the market, you can ask the merchants to buy wheat from the Central Plains for the next year." ”

Nowadays, most of the people who grow wheat in the south are refugees who have fled from the north to the south, and they have experience in growing wheat and will also feed on it. Although this is not a large scale, it is not difficult to harvest winter wheat seeds.

Under such an operation, if a businessman wants to raise the price of wheat and oppose the Wuhan center, it is basically unbearable. After all, one is an official and the other is a people, how can they compete!

"Color!"

Zhuge Liang clapped with a fan and said with a smile: "Zichu is good at strategizing, and the result is worthy of his reputation." Now I have collected more wheat from the people, and lent the people with interest, I am afraid that it will not be easy to promote, so I should follow the words of the beginning. ”

"Pay wheat as a tax, make a water mill, make bread from wheat, and rent seeds without interest. The above four policies are extended to the people, and the country will be able to prosper greatly if rice and wheat are cultivated in rotation. ”

"Kong Ming, when the former Han Dynasty Xiaocheng Emperor, the emperor ordered Lang Shengzhi to be the envoy of persuasion of agriculture, and taught the people to farm and cultivate intensively. Today, if you want to let the south prosper the wheat, you need to imitate the old examples, persuade the peasant envoys, go down to Wuchu, and teach the people to cultivate the wheat. Pang Tong suggested.

"Good!"

Zhuge Liang thought about it a little and said, "There can be someone to choose for the book and the lord." ”

"Under Jun's rule, Xuzhou don't drive Sima Zhi, the word Zihua, a person from Hanoi. Since the chaos in the world, he fled to Jingchu with his mother and studied in the countryside. Now in Hefei to reclaim the wasteland, and dredge the fertile water canal, there are many merits. ”

Huo Jun touched his beard and said, "Sima Zihua is diligent, loves the people, and is loyal to his official duties. The method of rotational cultivation of rice and wheat in the past was personally experimented by him. Now he is ordered to be a messenger to persuade farmers, and in a few years, he will be able to prosper in Maidang. ”

Before promising Sima Zhi to dredge the Feishui River Canal and resume production in Hefei, Huo Jun recommended it to the center. Now that Sima Zhi has done it, Huo Jun naturally has to fulfill his promise. After all, Sima Zhi has been appointed as a driver in Xuzhou for a long time, and the position of a driver should limit Sima Zhi's play.

And Sima Zhi is proficient in agricultural affairs, so it is very suitable for him to serve as a messenger to persuade farmers. After the work of persuading farmers is completed, Sima Zhi will either join the central government or be transferred to a wealthy county to serve as a taishou.

"Good!"

Zhuge Liang said with a smile: "The name of Zihua has been heard of a lot. Today, there are Zihua to persuade the agricultural messenger, how can it not be done in the rotation of wheat farming! ”

Saying that, Zhuge Liang said with admiration: "Zhong Miao is a general, he will go out of the town, do not forget the agricultural work, and should be an example of the general." If rice and wheat rotation can be achieved, the southerners will receive this grace for generations. ”

Huo Jun waved his hand to deny it, and said with a smile: "Zihua did it himself, the king issued the royal order, and Kong Ming and Zhuqing implemented the government. If it can be achieved now, how can it be the work of one person? ”

"Kong Ming is overrated!"

(End of chapter)