The Ming Dynasty started with saving the eldest grandson

Chapter 376 Old Zhu pours tea himself
Chen Jingke roughly explained the internal circulation, the big internal circulation, and the internal and external dual circulation.

The internal circulation means completing the economic cycle domestically and supporting an independent market through domestic consumption.

To put it simply, it means establishing a relatively complete industrial chain and selling the produced goods to domestic people.

The country's people earn wages by joining the industrial chain, and when they have money they spend it to stimulate production, which in turn promotes the development of the industrial chain.

In the past, there were not many countries that could support an independent market based on domestic consumption.

There were two, and then problems arose with both.

Then a third country emerged and became the only one.

"If you want to establish a complete circulation system, you either have to rely on the spontaneous operation of the market or the intervention of the imperial court, that is, the imperial court's macro-control."

"Relying on the market to operate spontaneously is too inefficient and can easily lead to problems."

"The court's intervention is the most effective means, more precise and efficient."

"For example, this time, stimulating the manufacturing industry and large-scale infrastructure construction are macroeconomic controls."

"People earn wages by participating in infrastructure projects. When they have money, they will improve their quality of life and spend money."

“And that in turn stimulates the commodity market.”

"If workshop owners can make money, they will be motivated to expand the scale of the industry and produce more goods."

"In this way, the court's plan to support the manufacturing industry will be easier to implement."

"Otherwise, the goods produced cannot be sold, and no one wants to expand."

This principle is quite simple, and Zhu Biao and Zhu Xiongying both nodded repeatedly.

Even Zhu Yuanzhang kept nodding, obviously he understood.

“The prosperity of the manufacturing industry will reduce the cost of goods.”

"People can buy more things with the same amount of money, and they will benefit as well."

“Thus, a cycle is established.”

"In the future, the imperial court only needs to control the direction and ensure that the market does not go astray, and let the market operate spontaneously in terms of details."

Having said that, Chen Jingke felt a little thirsty, picked up his cup and found it was empty.

Just as he was about to find the teapot, he saw a pair of big hands pick up the teapot and pour him a cup.

It was none other than Zhu Yuanzhang.

How could Chen Jingke dare to enjoy such treatment, and quickly stood up to express his gratitude.

Lao Zhu put down the teapot, waved his hand and urged: "There is no outsider here, why are you being so polite? Tell me quickly, I am listening attentively."

Finally I met someone I can understand, and he must tell me more.

Chen Jingke didn't know this, and he was deeply moved.

Lao Zhu poured tea for me personally.

I just want to ask, who else among the foreign officials has received such treatment?

Zhu Biao and his son Zhu Xiongying didn't think anything of it, and Zhu Biao didn't treat Chen Jingke as an outsider.

As for Zhu Xiongying... he often poured tea for Chen Jingke, so there was nothing to say.

After finishing his tea, Chen Jingke continued, "Infrastructure is actually a separate major topic."

“Why do we need to build infrastructure? What is the reason?”

Zhu Xiongying said as a matter of course: "Infrastructure benefits all people, so the court will naturally do it."

Zhu Yuanzhang rarely spoke and said, "No, it's different."

"The fundamental purpose of infrastructure construction presided over by the imperial court in every dynasty was to strengthen the country, and benefiting the people was only a secondary effect."

“On the other hand, even if these infrastructure projects will not benefit the people, they will still do it if it is beneficial to the country.”

“There are some honest and good officials who will do some infrastructure construction in their jurisdictions simply to benefit the people.”

"We were the same at the beginning. The starting point of everything we did was all for the national interest."

"We fight against corrupt officials, let the people live in peace and security, and care about their survival, just to maintain the rule of the court."

After hearing this, Zhu Biao remained silent. He had the same idea.

But after all, he was influenced by Chen Jingke, and he had a stronger sense of mission than Zhu Yuanzhang.

Now that the heavy responsibility of history has been placed in my hands, I must do something.

Zhu Xiongying frowned. It was the first time he heard Zhu Yuanzhang talk about this.

Too naked.

The Emperor is the Emperor, and the world belongs to Him.

The emperor is just the son of heaven, and he rules the world on behalf of heaven.

Ensuring that the people live and work in peace and contentment is the mission bestowed upon the emperor by Heaven.

How can you think only of your own rule?

No wonder Jing Ke always said that the emperor was just a landlord. It turns out that the root of the problem lies here.

It's not just the emperor, all the monarchs in the past probably had this kind of landlord mentality.

Humph, as expected, the truth is in my... and Jing Ke's hands.

Zhu Xiongying felt so proud.

I am the new emperor... No, I am the Son of Heaven.

The emperor and his grandfather are all old-fashioned monarchs. They say they are the Son of Heaven, but in their hearts they are just landlords. They are destined to be eliminated.

Fortunately, Lao Zhu and Zhu Biao cannot read minds, otherwise a mixed doubles match would be inevitable.

Old Zhu continued, "Jing Ke is different. His starting point is to benefit the people."

“His purpose of strengthening the country is that only when the country is strong and peaceful can the people live and work in peace and contentment.”

“So his policies often take into account the common interests of the country and the people.”

"And this is also the basis for your belief that you can escape the dynastic cycle, right? Am I right?"

Chen Jingke's expression was calm. If Zhu Yuanzhang and the others still couldn't see this, then they were very stupid.

"Your Majesty is wise. I believe that only by enriching the people, strengthening the country and improving productivity can the life of the dynasty be extended."

"I don't know how long it can last, but I can guarantee that the Ming Dynasty will last longer than the Han Dynasty."

The two Han dynasties lasted a total of more than 400 years, making it the longest dynasty after the unification of the Qin Dynasty.

Moreover, this dynasty was very powerful. Except for being bullied by the Huns at the beginning, it continued to bully others.

The state of Heng was destroyed by weakness, and the Han Dynasty was destroyed by strength.

It's not said in vain.

Even when chaos came at the end of the dynasty, the Han Dynasty continued to kill the barbarians and at least took the initiative at the strategic level.

For Zhu Yuanzhang, it was enough for the country to last longer than the Han Dynasty.

"So, we always support your reforms. Don't let us down."

Even though he no longer understood many of the changes, he still chose to believe.

Although the factors of Zhu Biao and Zhu Xiongying were involved, it also showed the trust in Chen Jingke.

Chen Jingke bowed and said, "Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty. Please wait and see."

Old Zhu nodded and said, "Just now you said that infrastructure is a separate major topic. Tell us in detail."

Chen Jingke then continued, "This involves Guanzi's philosophy of governing the country, enriching the people and strengthening the country."

"Because of the problem of starting point, our predecessors couldn't grasp the balance well."

"Or, in other words, they have a problem with their understanding of 'people'."

"The people they are talking about are not the common people, but a specific group."

"The final result is that the wealthy and powerful become rich, while the court and the people become poor."

Lao Zhu and the other two couldn't help but nod their heads, it was indeed true.

In the pre-Qin period, only the powerful and wealthy were worthy of having surnames, and the common people referred to the powerful and wealthy.

The word "min" also refers to a group with a certain identity and status.

Ordinary people at that time did not even have a surname, only a name, and the country called them "Qianshou" or something like that.

It was during the Qin Dynasty that the word "min" became a synonym for ordinary people in the legal sense.

But during the Qin, Han, Sui and Tang dynasties, the powerful and wealthy aristocrats coerced the people and regarded themselves as representatives of the people. When they spoke of pleading for the people, they were actually referring to themselves.

Accusing the imperial court of competing with the people for profit is actually scolding the imperial court for competing with oneself for profit.

At this time, the people were nothing more than tools for them to fight against the emperor.

During the Song Dynasty, the people were once again controlled by the emerging bureaucratic gentry and clan landlord groups.

The so-called enriching the people is actually just a slogan for them to deceive the emperor and oppress the people.

Of course, those monarchs themselves were not clean either.

They did not believe that their interests were the same as those of the common people; instead, they believed that they were governing the world together with the literati.

Only by satisfying the interests of the literati first can one maintain one's own rule.

Therefore, various privileges are given without paying any money.

And these privileges are one of the main reasons for the demise of the country.

However, the rulers of all dynasties were not all fools. They knew very well what the so-called "enriching the people" meant.

Therefore, any capable monarch will not implement policies to enrich the people.

Instead, fiscal policy will be tightened to accumulate money in the treasury.

On the contrary, the periods when monarchs who were crowned with the word "benevolent" were in power were mostly periods of accelerated wealth acquisition.

It left many big holes for future monarchs that could never be filled.

"We are different. The Ming Dynasty's national policy is to live and die with the people, rather than rule the world together with the bureaucrats and dignitaries."

"Our goal of enriching the people is to directly target the most ordinary and poorest people."

“So our policy is not to simply reduce taxes, nor is it to exempt taxes.”

"Instead, the tax is shifted to the rich, so that the poor pay less tax and the rich bear more social responsibilities."

“Instead of leaving our money in the treasury to rust, we should put it into circulation and create more value.”

"The purpose of our infrastructure construction is to benefit all people."

"Enriching the people is not just about giving them more money, but also about reducing their cost of living and improving their quality of life."

"For example, if a road is repaired, it will be more convenient for people to travel, which is also a manifestation of enriching the people."

"So, we will spend money to repair some roads that seem to be of no use to the court, and do some projects that the court cannot directly benefit from."

"And this road was bought with the money piled up in the treasury."

“It may seem useless, but it actually turns the dead money in the treasury into live money.”

"It has settled among the people and at the grassroots level."

"Once this money starts to flow, it will create more value."

"The court can collect taxes during the flow of money, and the money will eventually return to the treasury."

"But there are now many wider roads among the people, new clothes on the people, new houses and new furniture in their homes, and many more goods in the market..."

"In this process, the people have become richer and the country has become stronger."

"And this... is also the most perfect state of the internal circulation."

Zhu Yuanzhang and the other two were also very envious of what they said. If this state could really be achieved, it would not be a dream for the country to last longer than the Han Dynasty.

However, they also know that plans are plans, but whether they can be implemented is still a question.

Chen Jingke paused for a long time, waiting for the three people to digest most of it, before continuing:

"However, there is no such thing as perfection in the world. It is impossible to make the internal circulation perfect."

"Although the Ming Dynasty is vast and rich in resources, its resources are not unlimited..."

Zhu Yuanzhang interrupted and said, "Don't say that anymore. The territory of Ming Dynasty is indeed large, but I dare not say that."

"As far as growing food is concerned, the vast arable land in northern Ming Dynasty produces less than the crops of several islands in Southeast Asia."

"If there were no food from Southeast Asia, our manpower would be tied down by farmland."

"Without an abundant workforce, the infrastructure plan you mentioned cannot be implemented."

"So, the Ming Dynasty still needs external resources, which is what you call the external circulation, right?"

Zhu Biao, Zhu Xiongying and Chen Jingke all looked at him in surprise.

It’s incredible, it’s incredible that the emperor actually understood it.

"Hmph." Old Zhu snorted coldly.

You may have underestimated me, but now you know I'm not a pushover.

Zhu Xiongying spoke first, and said respectfully: "Grandpa Emperor is so smart. I wouldn't have thought of this if you hadn't said it."

Zhu Biao also praised: "Dad understood this much faster than I did."

Old Zhu looked up at the sky at a 45-degree angle, with a proud look on his face.

Only the wild twitching of his mouth revealed his inner thoughts.

Chen Jingke smiled secretly in his heart and complimented, "Your Majesty is wise, it is indeed so."

"We must use the resources of the world to build the Ming Dynasty."

"Therefore, we must create a good external circulation."

"But the external cycle is also different. The attitude towards vassal states cannot be the same as the attitude towards other countries."

“To distinguish the two, I divide it into a large inner loop and an outer loop.”

"The great internal circulation is the relationship we want to establish with our vassal states."

"Vassals are the core of our imperial plan. We cannot unilaterally plunder their resources, but we must lead them to become stronger and richer together."

"Java is rich in spices, so let them grow them with peace of mind."

"Then other vassal states would exchange their own specialties for spices from them."

"Java can also use its spices to exchange for the necessary materials from other countries."

"Some islands are rich in food, so let them use their expertise to find ways to produce more food..."

"The mission of the Ming Dynasty is to establish and maintain this circulation system."

"Through the internal circulation system, let the Ming Dynasty and the vassal system grow together."

"At the same time, the Ming Dynasty can also better control the vassal states through the internal circulation system."

"For purely foreign countries, the external circulation system should be applied, but how to do it specifically depends on the situation."

"Those who are on good terms with the Ming Dynasty and close to the Ming Dynasty can be given some sweet treats."

"Those who hate the Ming Dynasty are unilaterally plundering resources."

"Ultimately achieve long-term peace and stability in the Ming Dynasty and help it break out of the dynastic cycle..."

This is also the implementation plan that Chen Jingke formulated for the imperial plan.

With the vassal system as its foundation, the idea of ​​universal harmony as its driving force, and the internal and external dual circulation as its economic system...

The entire world is divided into three levels: Ming Dynasty, vassal states and foreign countries.

The core is the Ming Dynasty, the inner circle is the vassal states, and the outer circle is other countries.

In addition to the imperial plan, Chen Jingke has an even more ambitious plan.

That is global sinicization and global common prosperity...

But this is too difficult and too idealistic.

Even though he was a time traveler, he knew that this was impossible.

Therefore, he just thought about it and then made down-to-earth plans for the long-term development of China.

After hearing the entire plan, Zhu Yuanzhang and the other two were also very excited.

It's connected. Everything is connected.

I know that Jing Ke has a far-reaching plan and he takes one step at a time and plans ten or a hundred steps ahead.

It turned out to be correct.

The three of them are also full of confidence in breaking out of the dynasty cycle.

Even if you can't jump out, you can delay that time as much as possible.

Surpassing the Han Dynasty is no longer a dream.

(End of this chapter)