Daming 1805

Chapter 13 What is the value of freedom?

Zhu Jingyuan thought about the matter and finished washing his face, and turned to look at the two maids next to him, Chunxiang and Qiuyue.

The two North Korean maidservants who have been taking care of them for five years have just turned their heads this year, and their bodies are not yet fully mature, but their images have been roughly determined.

Chunxiang is of medium height, with a relatively well-proportioned body, fair and clean cheeks, dark and bright eyes, and a soft but not seductive figure, which is very in line with the aesthetics of Daming serious people.

Cautious and careful, dexterous and docile, and well-mannered, she is considered to be the top among the maids, and the wives of ordinary families cannot get this level.

Qiuyue's body is slightly shorter, but her body curves are more ups and downs, and she also has a cute baby face.

In the concept of traditional Ming people, Qiuyue is a slightly disabled person, but in Zhu Jingyuan's view, it also has a different flavor.

Thinking of what happened in the court yesterday, Zhu Jingyuan asked tentatively:
"Chunxiang, Qiuyue, you are not too young, you are almost ready to get married, I will let your father let you out of the house..."

The two maids were startled, and Chunxiang knelt down without hesitation:

"This servant knows what's wrong, please punish your Highness."

Qiuyue was stunned for two seconds, and then knelt down. She didn't know what to say, so she also learned Chunxiang's words:

"Please punish, Your Highness."

The kneeling etiquette between "people" in the New Daming Dynasty was abolished, but it still naturally remained among the servants.

Zhu Jingyuan expected the reaction of the two, and at this time, he continued to ask helplessly:
"Since you know it's wrong, then tell me what's wrong?"

Chunxiang's expression was a little flustered, but more blank:
"The servant made His Highness dislike it. It must be the servant's fault. I implore Your Highness to make it clear that the servant must correct it."

Qiuyue followed suit:
"Yes, yes, the slaves must make corrections, please give instructions from Your Highness..."

Zhu Jingyuan sighed in his heart and tried to explain in another way:
"Actually, I don't dislike you, I'm really thinking about you. You two have taken care of me for so many years, and you have worked hard.

"I want your father to release you as slaves and arrange a job for you in a factory under the royal consortium. Would you like to go?"

This time, the two slaves were almost instinctive, and at the same time they said loudly and decisively:
"The servant is not willing to leave, the servant just wants to serve His Highness."

From Chunxiang's point of view, her highness must be testing herself, and Qiuyue felt that her highness was frightening her.

They didn't know that Zhu Jingyuan was already a prince, but even if he was the prince's young maid, it was unlikely that he would become a concubine, mainly because of the age difference.

However, referring to the prince and his close subordinates is a very normal and traditional typical operation.

The worst thing is to be the wife of the steward of the prince's family when he is an adult, or even directly to be the steward in the courtyard.

As for going out to work as a worker in a factory, that's the punishment for the rejected handmaiden.

But in Zhu Jingyuan's view, if all the Korean maids, women, and Burmese servants are released together, they are lucky to be able to work as workers in the consortium's factories...

Just releasing all the slaves as a whole will definitely cause social unrest, and it is impossible for the owner of the slaves to accept it. After all, the slaves are bought back with money.

Zhu Jingyuan also considered the identities of Chunxiang and Qiuyue. In the current environment, they were the most credible people around him besides immediate family members.

They have not received professional education, and they may not be able to analyze ordinary social problems, but their personal experiences are definitely more professional than professionals.

So Zhu Jingyuan asked in a consultative tone:
"Then Chunxiang, Qiuyue, you two imagine that if the maidservant's deed is replaced by a 20-year employment agreement, and at the same time the status of a free person is allowed to marry and live on her own, do you think everyone will accept it?"

Chunxiang was stunned for three seconds, then seemed to realize something, and tried to answer seriously:
"The slaves think that it is difficult for everyone to accept it, because then everyone will worry about how to live in old age, but in fact, everyone does not want to change their current life.

"Especially like a slave, who has no intention of leaving here to go anywhere. The slave just wants to serve His Highness like this forever..."

Qiuyue's reaction was not too slow, and after Chunxiang finished speaking, she also tasted what happened, so she said with a little cry:
"Your maid doesn't want to leave, Your Highness, do you have to change it like this in the future? Can you not change it..."

Zhu Jingyuan shook his head when he heard what the two said. Zhu Jingyuan knew that the two girls were telling the truth, but this kind of truth made people very helpless.

It seems difficult to understand that the master is willing to give them freedom, but they are unwilling to accept it, but it is indeed a reality.

Chunxiang, a maid who took care of the prince's daily life, was originally even the highest grade among the servants, but it was one grade lower than the emperor's personal maid.

The key is that Zhu Jingyuan is a good master and will never toss her for no reason.

Occasionally, she also gave some jewelry and money, and she also had the opportunity to become the prince's concubine.

Now that Zhu Jingyuan gave her freedom, she would not want it, unless she was guaranteed to arrange grassroots management of the consortium, or the arrangement of the wife of a low-level bureaucrat.

As for those ordinary domestic servants and slave laborers in factories, as long as they come from normal channels and have normal purposes, most of them do not want to become free people.

As long as their masters have normal brains, they won't kill slaves for no reason.

Because the slave itself is the property of the master, and it is not low in value.

The master will give the slaves the most basic living security, and even have to worry about them getting sick and hurting, because sickness, injury, and death are all losses.

But the world's hirelings are different.

What the employer buys is the amount of labor of the employee over a period of time, not the employee himself.

Employers only care about how much work the employees can do during the time they are hired, and will ask them to do as much work as possible.

Even if the employee dies after working, the employer will not lose any property, so it doesn't care about the employee's life or death.

Therefore, in this world, the living conditions of employees in the lowest-level factories are actually lower than those of the lowest-level servants, at least in terms of living security.

Therefore, even the lowest-level normal servants would not be willing to become the lowest-level hired workers.

Unless they become hired workers, they can continue to retain the same treatment as normal slaves, that is, they can get the most basic living guarantee.

But in the actual emancipation movement, and in the actual abolition movement, the liberators usually do not give this guarantee.

Therefore, when the slaves were freed, the fate in front of them was actually like this:

From having basic living security, there is a high probability of being able to barely survive without a state of freedom.

It becomes a state of freedom without any security, and may die at any time.

Slaves actually exchanged life security for the so-called freedom.

For those at the bottom who are struggling to survive on the brink of death, it is obvious which state they want to keep.

So the slaves can get freedom and not because the slaves themselves are ignorant or stupid, but because the liberators are mostly selfish.

The people who work have changed from slaves to hired laborers, and the master does not need to care about the life and death of the people who work. The overall operating cost is reduced, which is the internal driving force of the abolition movement.

Now, if the vassal state is withdrawn from Korea and other vassal states, the citizens of the corresponding vassal empire will be treated, and it is forbidden to buy and sell them as slaves.

However, if the imperial court did not directly target the slave industry, and did not guide and reform the thinking of the buyers and sellers, the de facto business would definitely continue.

And it will quickly automatically convert into a transaction executed in the form of "hire".

The result of this is that the object of the sale has changed from a slave to a hired laborer. It is not a complete sell-off of the buyer, and the purchase price will definitely be lowered.

So even slave traders may support abolition.

But in the eyes of the parents who sold the child, the child is still sold, and even if the child is theoretically free, he will never see it again.

However, the actual money received after the sale is actually less than theoretically.

The difference between the two before is about the value of freedom.

Zhu Jingyuan shook his head, shook off these thoughts, and said to the two maids in front of him:

"Chunxiang, Qiuyue, think about it carefully, what kind of promise you and other ordinary servants need to get so that you can safely change from slave to hired labor.

"The relevant news has not been confirmed yet, the two of you will discuss it yourself, don't tell others for the time being, think for yourself, and tell me when I come back from my morning exercise.

"This may be related to the future arrangements of all servants, including you, so consider it carefully and don't hide it."

After Zhu Jingyuan finished speaking, he put down the towel and turned to go out. The two maidservants who were confused and anxious quickly stood up and followed.

(End of this chapter)