At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 411, the following is also difficult with textile industry data

Gongsun Chi did not expect that even now there are still people who dare to oppose the emperor's order. He said angrily: "The emperor's latest order is to abide by the three red lines. Are you trying to say that you can see further than the emperor?"

"Don't use the emperor's orders to pressure us. The emperor also said that we should seek truth from facts and analyze specific issues. The emperor is in Chang'an City. He may see the crisis in Chang'an, but it may not be suitable for Kuaiji County. I have not found any crisis in Kuaiji County."

The manager of another workshop complained, "We all know that we should obey the emperor and the minister, but we also have to obey the orders of the county. They ask us to expand production capacity and make more money. Can we refuse?
Our workshops were built with the county's money. According to the original division of the court, Kuaiji County is our superior."

Another steward said sarcastically, "Gongshu Shaofu Cheng, if you have the ability, go and persuade the governor and the Han officials of Kuaiji County. If the higher-ups agree, how dare we disobey the emperor's order?"

This was obviously something that Gongsun Chi could not do. Not to mention that the two sides were not from the same system, the prefect of two thousand stones was in a high position of power, and the prefect of Kuaiji County was half a rank higher than the ordinary prefect. It was simply not something that a Shaofu Cheng like him could command.

These managers seemed to have found a way to deal with Gongshu Chi. They took out some problems that were difficult for them to solve and gave them to them, such as there were too many old soldiers assigned by the court and their textile factories could not accommodate so many people. Should the court build a new workshop to accommodate these people?

They also brought up the debt owed by the Kuaiji County Shipyard, saying that the shipyard owed them tens of millions of dollars for canvas alone. The shipyard was a workshop directly under the Shaofu, so could Gongshu Shaofu Cheng solve this problem for us first?

The textile industry in Kuaiji County was different from other places. Most of the textile factories here produced sailcloth for ships. After all, the sailcloth of a ship was equivalent to the amount used by thousands of people. The largest three-masted sailing ship in the Han Dynasty had thousands of bolts of sail cloth and spare cloth.

Kuaiji County Shipyard is the largest customer of the local textile factory, consuming hundreds of thousands of pieces of canvas every year. However, they occupy the upstream of the industry and have a sense of bullying customers. They often default on payments for fabrics, but since they are the largest customer, they can only endure it. Many people have been punished for debt collection.

"It just so happens that the Minister of the Imperial Household is not here right now. You should take the initiative to execute your orders. Otherwise, can you help us receive the payment?"

These questions made Gongshu Chi very angry, as it was a blow to himself. So the meeting ended in a bad mood.

Compared to Gongshu Chi, who had a very difficult task, Cao An, the chief accountant, and his men made smooth progress. Every day he counted the number of looms in Kuaiji County and the number of spindles on spinning wheels.

For Cao An, a special envoy from the imperial court who would not affect their production, the stewards below still gave him great face and would personally entertain him every time he arrived at a workshop.

After three rounds of drinking, steward Lu Yan let go of his wine and kept complaining: "The higher-ups want us to reduce production, sell short, and collect accounts receivable. It's not that easy. Just say we should reduce production, but the court always asks us to relocate retired soldiers. To relocate people, we need jobs and expand production. But now the court wants us to reduce production."

"We also want to reduce production, but what should we do with the people we just recruited? Should we dismiss them? If anyone dares to do this, I'm afraid the generals above us won't forgive us."

"Although we are also a workshop under the Shaofu, we are not as good as the workshop directly under the Shaofu like the Kuaiji County Shipyard. We are under the jurisdiction of Kuaiji County. The governor wants us to expand our production capacity. Can we violate it? Now that you are fighting at the top, how can we do things at the bottom?"

"Expand production in the morning, reduce production in the afternoon, hire people today, lay off people tomorrow? Isn't this crazy!"

"It's not that we don't want to obey the court's orders, but we also have difficulties. The court doesn't know this at all. They only know that we have to obey once the order is issued. But there is no such easy thing in the world. Since they want us to reduce production, why do they also want us to resettle the veterans?"

Cao An poured Lu Yan a glass of wine and comforted him, "It's easy for the boss to talk, but it's hard for the boss to do things. I understand you, brother."

"We often encounter this problem in the accounting office. When we count production capacity, we report a high number, but when we pay taxes, we report a low number. They don't match up at all, but they still complain that our statistics are inaccurate. We have to find a way to clean up the inaccurate data. The court is pressing us, so we often work overtime, and we are blamed by the higher-ups for not being able to do even the smallest things well. What can we say? Can we say that the numbers given by the governors below are inaccurate?"

Lu Yan said: "Brother, you are also a miserable person."

After a few interactions, the two people developed empathy and their relationship became more harmonious.

When they were almost done eating, Cao An said, "Brother, don't blame me for being nosy."

"You said."

"The court asked you to limit production, mainly because the emperor believes that the textile industry in the Han Dynasty has begun to have overcapacity. If the production capacity is not restricted, not to mention making money, it is good enough if you don't lose money. Judging from past experience, the emperor has a long-term vision and what he says will definitely not be wrong. If your textile factory does not make preparations now, think about the past two years. The price of grain in the Han Dynasty has dropped from more than 100 coins per stone to 30 coins now.

If the price of cloth also drops to around 200 coins, can your textile factory still survive? If the textile factory goes bankrupt, how will the hundreds of people here survive?"

Lu Yan was stunned when he heard this, but he thought that the emperor had always been known for his long-term vision and had never made a mistake in what he said over the years. If the price of cloth dropped to only one-third of the original price, they would lose a lot of money, not to mention making money.

Cao An continued, "Why did a certain accountant come to Kuaiji County? It was to count the number of textile workshops and textile machines in the entire Han Dynasty. The court had to know the situation in order to deal with this crisis. The court spent so much energy on this, so there must be something wrong.

So brother, you should also have a sense of crisis, and don’t let the workshop go bankrupt and you lose your job as manager.”

Lu Yan nodded seriously.

The situation like Kuaiji County was common in all the counties of the Han Dynasty. Although Xu Fan wanted to control the scale of the textile industry, it had no effect. The most he could do was to control the scale of the textile workshops directly under the Shaofu. Even the local government offices were unwilling to do so and secretly disobeyed his orders.

The efficiency of the Han Dynasty's textile industry increased too quickly. Large water-powered spinning wheels could increase the spinning efficiency by hundreds of times, and the animal-powered spinning wheels used in the north were dozens of times more efficient. The efficiency of textile machines also increased exponentially. This year, the Han Dynasty's textile machines were completely different from when Xu Fan came. They were first improved to pedal textile machines, which increased the efficiency by three times, and then the flying shuttle was improved, which doubled the efficiency of the textile machines again.

In the past two years, Gongshu Chou has even invented a water-powered textile machine. One water-powered textile machine is equivalent to more than a dozen previous textile machines. The efficiency of textile production has reached the limit of the pre-industrial era.

At the same time, the policy of the Han Dynasty also supported the development of the textile industry. Whether it was a government-run workshop or a private workshop, whether it was the Han Dynasty court or the local government, in recent years they had been frantically setting up textile workshops and expanding the production capacity of the textile industry.

In addition, Xu Fan created a financial accelerator such as a bank. The unbridled expansion of the textile industry was like a carriage going downhill, and it was impossible to stop it.

On June 20th, the eleventh year of the Han calendar, Guangyang County, the port dock.

Liu Fei, the new director of the Han Dynasty Bank, came here to personally order a batch of gold and silver. He did not expect that the captain of the ship transporting the gold and silver was actually his cousin Liu Bi. The two brothers naturally wanted to celebrate their meeting, so they found a tavern near the dock, ordered some lobsters and crabs, and a bottle of sugarcane wine, and they drank a lot.

Liu Fei asked, "How did my cousin become a member of the Han Navy?"

Liu Bi said: "A few years ago, I was introduced by my uncle to study at the Han Naval Academy. After graduation, I was transferred to the Japanese island."

After drinking a few glasses of wine, Liu Bi said unconvincedly: "Comparison is the thief of anger. If I had come of age a few years later, the world would have been peaceful, and even the last enemy of the Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu, had been defeated. I am really a hero with no place to use my talents. I can only fight savages on the Japanese island and search for the gold and silver mines that the emperor mentioned in the wilderness."

Liu Bi is considered to be the most sturdy and brave of the old Liu family. In history, Liu Bi was granted the title of Marquis of Pei when he was 20 years old. When Ying Bu rebelled, Liu Bi followed Liu Bang as a cavalry general to defeat Ying Bu's army. In history, Liu Bang had always been wary of the land of Jiangdong, so he chose the sturdy and brave Liu Bi to guard Jiangdong. From the results, Liu Bang's choice was correct. Liu Bi managed the land of Jiangdong very well. It's just that Liu Bang would never have thought that his descendants would kill Liu Bi's prince because of a game of chess. Everyone knows what happened next.

Liu Bi said this because he was indignant that his talent was not appreciated. He had joined the Han army for four years, but he was only a military marquis. Compared with other generals of the Han Dynasty, they had become generals in four years. This was no different from a tortoise crawling. He did not think that he would lose to Ying Bu and Ji Bu, but that he was born at the wrong time and encountered a peaceful world.

Liu Fei said: "It is better for the world to be peaceful, so that the people can live a good life. After all, war means death, so it is better not to fight if possible."

After thinking for a while, Liu Fei said, "Now that the world is peaceful, have you ever thought about transferring to a civilian position and becoming a Han official? It is too dangerous to stay on a ship all day."

Even though the Han Dynasty's ships were getting bigger and bigger, and their safety was greatly improved after the use of watertight compartments, there were still a dozen ships that suffered various accidents every year due to wind and waves. Every time such an accident occurred, it would be reported monthly, which led ordinary people to believe that the sea was too dangerous.

Liu Bi said: "Han officials have too many rules and regulations. I don't want to do it. I still like the atmosphere in the army more. Now the only one who can make contributions is the navy."

Then he said proudly: "We have discovered a large silver mine this time. The general has said that we will be the first to make contributions and will definitely be rewarded by the emperor. Wa Island will also be valued by the court and receive a lot of investment. Our North Sea Fleet has finally ushered in a prosperous moment."

You should know that the headquarters of the Han Navy is in their North Sea Fleet, but because the Spice Islands were discovered in the south, the court has always paid more attention to the South Sea Fleet. Whether it is new naval warships or troops, the majority of them are from the South Sea Fleet, and even the military expenditures are occupied more by the South Sea Fleet, showing a trend of rebellion against the Tiangang. If the generals of the two fleets were not friends of life and death, I am afraid that the two sides would have fought long ago.

Of course, the officers of the Northern Fleet would also envy their colleagues, who had a spice island that was like a treasure and inexhaustible, as well as the South Sea Islands for the court to cultivate and enfeoff princes.

Their Northern Fleet only discovered the Wa Islands, which had a total of four or five islands, with only some worthless specialties such as sulfur and wood.

This time they finally discovered the huge silver mine that the emperor had mentioned, and their Northern Fleet finally arrived at their own Spice Island.

Liu Bi was a little drunk and said proudly: "Finally, God has given me this opportunity. With this merit, I can definitely become a military commander. According to the court's policy this year, I can be promoted to a higher rank if I go to the border area. I can become a captain of Wadao. As the gold and silver mines become more and more important to the Han Dynasty, Wadao may also be able to establish a protectorate. By then, I may be able to become a general."

Liu Bi also had a plan for his career. The Han army was becoming more and more regularized, and it took three to five years to be promoted to a higher level. It was impossible to become a captain without more than ten or twenty years. And if he wanted to become a general of the Han Dynasty, even with the support of his uncle, his hope was slim. However, with the discovery of the super-large silver mine, he saw hope.

Liu Fei was a little worried and said, "The Japanese island is a cold and miserable place. I heard that there is nothing on the island except wild people."

Liu Bi said: "It is only in a poor and miserable place that one can be promoted. Now military merit is no longer available. Only by enduring hardships can one be promoted easily."

In order to attract officers to garrison the frontiers, the Han Dynasty's policies have begun to lean towards the frontiers. Whether in terms of promotion or treatment, soldiers and officers in the frontiers are one level higher than those in the interior, in order to attract outstanding talents to be stationed in the frontiers. At the same time, in the promotion of officers, these officers stationed in the frontiers should also be given priority.
Then Liu Bi asked, "Brother, have you always been the manager of this bank?"

Liu Fei said: "The money bank manager is good, and the salary is very high in the Han Dynasty. Ordinary people would not come if they want to."

Liu Bi said: "Brother, can you compare with ordinary people? You are the son of a prince. Your uncle may not give you a fief, but he should also find a way to make you a Han official."

Liu Fei said calmly: "My life is not bad now. The manager of the bank may not be inferior to the Han official. Cousin, please don't use the situation of the Qin Dynasty to look at my Han Dynasty."

He knew that his stepmother had murderous intentions towards him. His father Liu Bang had told him that he should work hard in the Han Dynasty, settle down and start a family there, and never return to Pei State.

July of the eleventh year of the Han calendar.

There was not much good news from the local areas, and the Han officials sent out by the Shaofu did not play much of a warning role. Even though the court had said that it would limit production capacity, it was difficult to implement it in the local areas due to various conflicts of interest, and some of them were even caused by the Han court itself.

Just like Xu Fan wants to resettle retired veterans, but now the Han Dynasty retires 2 to 3 veterans every year. These soldiers can only be resettled in the county workshops to which the veterans belong. The local handicraft industry is expanding rapidly and can still accommodate these soldiers. If the expansion speed cannot keep up with the speed of veteran retirement, then some logistical positions can only be added, which is the reason why the county workshops are overstaffed and profits are declining.

Although the workshops were asked to reduce production, their salary expenses would not be reduced. So to some extent, the Han Dynasty's workshops could only continue to expand their production capacity in order to accommodate the old soldiers who were constantly being laid off.

Faced with this situation, Xu Fan couldn't help but smile bitterly. Is this a variation on the way millions of canal workers make a living?
As expected, every policy has its pros and cons. If you talk about welfare, you will definitely lose efficiency. But the Han people today are not qualified to talk about welfare, and subsequent policies cannot be copied in their entirety.

The Han Dynasty court must reform its placement of veterans. It is easy to place 2 to 3 people now, but if the court continues to do so with more than retired soldiers every year, it will have to support a million water transport workers.

Of course, even with so many obstacles, because the Han court had a stranglehold on the money houses, forcing them to deposit 30% of their reserves before September, the number of new textile factories, cement factories, and brick kiln factories in the entire Han Dynasty decreased significantly, and the amount of investment money dropped sharply.

But this caused dissatisfaction among the Han people. The Han Dynasty was originally a peaceful and prosperous place, but the economy came to a standstill this year. From the common people to the craftsmen, the economy went from hot to cold, and from the workshop owners to the Han nobles, everyone was dissatisfied with the current policies of the Han Dynasty.

October 10th, the eleventh year of the Han calendar.

The Han Dynasty's new year's sage meeting was held. However, most of the sages this year were filled with anger.

Many wise men even said directly: "Xiao He simply does not have the talent to be a prime minister. If he continues to serve as prime minister, the situation of the Han Dynasty will only get worse."

"The old prime minister is still more reliable. The Han Dynasty will only prosper under his governance."

Under the crusade of countless sages, Xiao He, as the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, made his first meeting of sages, which was a reward for the development of the Han Dynasty court in the past year.

The data is not good. Only a few large counties and prefectures maintained tax growth, while the rest either stagnated or regressed. This is the first time that such a situation has occurred in the Han Dynasty. Overall, the Han Dynasty's finances maintained a small amount of growth, but this did not satisfy the sages.

Many wise men heard this data and shouted: "A mediocre minister will ruin the country, a mediocre minister will ruin the country."

The voices criticizing Xiao He were getting louder and louder, so Xu Fan had no choice but to speak out: "Please, all wise men, listen to the prime minister's report before making any comments."

This calmed the restless hearts of the sages.

Xiao He emphasized the data of the textile industry and said, "According to the statistics of the accountants, the Han Dynasty had more than 130 million new looms, not including the old looms in the civilian sector. Based on the taxes collected from the textile industry, the Han Dynasty can produce more than million pieces of cloth each year. The textile industry in the Han Dynasty has already experienced structural overcapacity."

(End of this chapter)