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

Chapter 700, Eight Hours of Freedom

Liu You asked his son Liu Sui to go to Tianzhu with 3000 million yuan to support his nephew's career, while he and a group of business partners were invited by Chen Jun to visit the Yangxia Automobile Industrial Zone.

After arriving in Yangxia, Liu You was surprised to find that many of his old friends were here, including Kuai Xu from Nanjun, Zhuo Wangsun from Shuzhong, Wuyan De from Hedong and others. After communicating with each other, they found that they were all invited by Chenjun to visit the automobile industrial zone.

Zhuo Wangsun was surprised and said, "Chen County has always disliked big merchants like us, so why did they specially invite us to come this time?"

He was a little flattered. His Zhuo family had some strength in Shuzhong. He had some friendship with the governor of Shuzhong, Guan He. Shuzhong had built dams and upgraded the railway network. The demand for steel had been great in recent years. His steel mill had been doing very well in the past two years. But almost no one in Shuzhong knew him. After all, this had entered the era of great navigation. The coastal areas were the most prosperous, but Shu County was a little backward.

Wang Lun smiled and said, “Although the Chenjun Mo family is far superior, now all the counties in the Han Dynasty are developing the automobile industry, and they are also anxious.”

Kuai Xu smiled calmly and said, "Don't worry. The number of automobile factories in Kuaiji County has surpassed that of Chen County, and the production capacity is also catching up quickly. If Chen County continues to eat alone, it will be surpassed by Kuaiji County."

If we talk about the hottest industry in the Han Dynasty in the past six months, it must be the automobile industry. Chenjun's automobile industry has grown to 7 million yuan. Everyone in the Han Dynasty is jealous. Everyone sees that automobiles will be a pillar industry worth hundreds of billions, and of course they want to get a piece of the pie.

After the Sages' Meeting ended, each county formulated a local automobile industry development plan, and automobile factories sprang up like mushrooms after a rain. Of course, due to technical and investment issues, most of these automobile factories were hand-built by master craftsmen, and they were the kind of handmade products with high costs and low production capacity.

But places like Chang'an, Luoyang, Kuaiji County, and Linzi County had technology and capital. Even though Chen County had the first-mover advantage, they also established automobile production lines and quickly caught up. Among them, Kuaiji County, relying on its strong financial advantages, had hundreds of automobile factories emerge in half a year and raised tens of billions of dollars in financing to manufacture cars.

The automobile industry in the Han Dynasty now looks a bit like that of later generations. Merchants with a little financial resources and ambition have begun to build cars. Even master craftsmen with some skills can get financing by showing their hand-built cars at the stock exchange.

The automobile industry has experienced leaps and bounds in the past six months. To use an old saying, everything is booming and full of vitality.

In just half a year, Liu You invested in eight automobile factories in Kuaiji County, all of which he had carefully investigated and studied. The directors of the eight automobile factories were all people with strong hands-on ability and strong execution, not the kind of directors who could only draw pie in the sky. These start-up workshops did not have much financing, and only spent a total of 8 million yuan, but as long as one survived and became a billion-level factory, his investment would be returned hundreds of times.

This is also the exciting part of angel investment, which tests a person's vision, strength, and luck. As long as one company is successful, it is enough to offset all the failures. Because the Han people suppressed gambling, angel investment has become a substitute for gambling.

Liu You shook his head and said, "Chen County is too rigid. After all, it is a first-tier city in the Han Dynasty, but it doesn't even have a stock exchange. It also has strict control over business activities. No wonder it can't compete with Kuaiji County."

Big merchants like them still prefer the free atmosphere of Kuaiji County, and their money can also be used to invest in industries around the world through Kuaiji County's money bank system.

At this time, a Han official wearing Taizu clothing came over and said with a smile: "I am Yan Zhu, the magistrate of Xiayang County. Welcome everyone to visit Xiayang Auto City."

Several people bowed in return, and then they saw a large vehicle like a passenger bus coming towards them.

Assistant Yan smiled and said, "This is a new long-distance bus developed by our Chenjun. It is more comfortable than ordinary buses and suitable for long-term riding."

Several people followed Yan Zhu into the car without hesitation and found that the interior structure of this bus was indeed different from other buses. The seats were spacious, more comfortable, and adjustable. Not long after the car started, the sound of someone reading a book appeared.

"It is said that when the Duke of England was a child, a sorcerer came one day. He was extremely surprised when he saw the Duke of England's face and said, 'Your face is extraordinary. You will become king after being tortured.'"

There is no one here who is not familiar with "The Biography of the Duke of England". The novel industry in the Han Dynasty was very developed, and the court's propaganda system had always been very powerful. Nobles of the duke level in the Han Dynasty all had special biographies to record their merits, and with the flourishing storytelling industry, they were considered to be familiar with these stories. But what surprised them was that cars could listen to the radio?

So they all looked at the county magistrate Yan Zhu in surprise.

Assistant Yan smiled and said, "This broadcasting system was developed by Donghai County. It is very suitable for long-distance buses. It allows passengers to listen to books while resting."

Donghai County invited Deng Tong to be the county governor. He went against the crowd and did not follow the trend to develop the automobile manufacturing industry. Instead, he invested limited funds in the radio industry. While the automobile industry of the Han Dynasty was in fierce competition, Donghai County's radios, phonographs and other products were quietly conquering the market. They also reached a cooperation agreement with large-scale automobile factories to install their radios in cars.

After more than half a year of development, the output value of Donghai County's radio industry has exceeded hundreds of millions and is still growing rapidly.

Ji Chen and his companions whispered, "It seems that Chenjun is more advanced in the automotive industry."

The bus had been driving for less than half an hour when Yan Zhu said, "We have arrived at Xiayang's automobile industrial zone."

Liu You and his companions looked over and found factories that were larger than palaces. They saw dozens of these factories, and the area they occupied was larger than a city. This surprised them all. Chen County only had a few car factories, but how come there were more than a hundred factories here?

Assistant Yan proudly introduced: "This is the automobile industrial zone built three years ago. It is the first industrial base in Chen County to have access to water, electricity, roads, and telegraph. The first phase of the project covers an area of ​​10 mu. Now there are 6 automobile factories and more than automobile parts factories."

Then Yan Zhu proudly said: "In the past three years, our Chenjun has applied for more than 3000 automobile-related patents. % of the patents in the automobile industry are in our Chenjun. It is not an exaggeration to say that the standards of Chenjun are the standards of the automobile industry."

"We now produce 5 vehicles a year, and the second and third phases of the project are already under construction. Eventually, the Yangxia Automobile Industrial Zone will become a super industrial zone with thousands of supporting factories and an annual output of 40 vehicles."

In order to ensure stable production and improve efficiency in the automobile industrial zone, we moved all the factories supporting automobiles to this industrial zone. At the same time, we also built a lot of infrastructure. There is a special automobile port in Yangxia. In order to prepare for the transportation of automobiles, we have set up special containers and factory warehouses, thus forming a very complete and fast supporting system. Any automobile-related parts in this industrial zone can be found within half an hour. "

"Annual production of 50,000 vehicles!" Liu Youyou was surprised, "I'm afraid that all other places in Dahan combined don't have such a high production capacity."

The prices of cars in the Han Dynasty varied, but were generally around 10 coins. The output value of 50 cars exceeded 7 billion coins. Half a year ago, the output value of cars in Chen County was only million coins. In just half a year, the output value increased several times. This speed surprised everyone.

What is even more surprising is that other counties have only built a few factories at most, but Chen County has already started to develop on a cluster scale. This is simply the gap between militia and standing army.

Kuai Xu said: "The automobile industry in other counties and prefectures of the Han Dynasty is still in the state of handicraft, and it is difficult to exceed a thousand vehicles a year. Only the large counties have a little more all year round. It is difficult for them to add up to more than 5 vehicles. If nothing unexpected happens, the automobile factories in other regions will not be able to compete with Chen County's automobiles."

Liu You's face was full of bitterness. The combined production capacity of the eight automobile factories he invested in was less than 8 vehicles. How could it compare with Chenjun Automobile? He was also a top student in the university, so he naturally knew that the larger the scale of industrialization, the lower the cost. Coupled with the advantages of industrial clusters, the eight automobile factories he invested in would probably not survive under the suppression of Chenjun. For a while, everyone fell into thinking. Because Chenjun had many restrictions on capital, they had little willingness to invest.

But now it seems that this melee in the automotive industry is coming to an end just as it began.

This is just like the war between Qin and Han. It seemed that the number of rebel armies was everywhere and countless, but the only one with real combat effectiveness was the Han army. In the end, it was the emperor who took over the world.

It seems that Kuaiji County can be caught up, but it is probably Xiang Yu's fate. If he cannot occupy the industry, it seems not bad to stand on the victorious side and gain benefits.

Several people came to a factory with the name of Chenjun First Automobile Factory. They put on their helmets and, led by Yan Zhu, came to the automobile production workshop.

On the assembly line, craftsmen were busy installing auto parts one by one onto a car chassis. These craftsmen were extremely skilled and one of them could operate two or three machines, such as lathes, drilling machines, etc. The scene was busy but orderly. They watched the craftsmen assemble a car from parts one by one.

"This speed is too fast." Zhuo Wangsun said in surprise. He was also a master craftsman, and he knew how advanced the current assembly line technology was. A car is made up of thousands of parts. To assemble thousands of parts into a car according to standard processes in such a short period of time, the technology and management level are more than ten times higher than that of his steel plant.

At the very least, it was difficult for ordinary craftsmen in Shu County to reach this level of technology and organization. With the support of the Taishou Mansion in recent years, he had also begun to develop into the machinery industry and hired highly skilled craftsmen. However, due to the skills of the craftsmen, even the simplest steam engine was only of third-rate quality in the entire Han Dynasty. He could only rely on cost advantages and the desired transportation to buy it in the Nanzhong region.

Assistant Yan said with a smile: "This assembly line can produce a car every half an hour. It is no exaggeration to say that this production line is the most advanced in the world."

Zhuo Wangsun immediately calculated: "This assembly line has a daily production capacity of 48 cars, which means it can produce more than cars a year. You only have three car production lines in Chen County?"

Assistant Yan shook his head and said, "We in Yangxia implement a six-day, seven-hour work system, with only two shifts, morning and afternoon. This production line can produce 30 cars a day, and the annual output is . We have seven such production lines."

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He was also helpless about this. In the officialdom of the Han Dynasty, outstanding political achievements were the best ladder for advancement. Chen Jun's designation of Yangxia as an automobile production center was a pie in the sky for him. Naturally, he wanted the automobile industry to develop as new as possible, and it would be best if the second and third phases of the project were completed directly, making Yangxia a production base with an annual output of 40 vehicles.

But the Mohists did not agree with this three-shift production method, and neither did the craftsmen. It was Han Anguo who came up with the idea of ​​a 7-hour 6-day work system and a morning and afternoon shift production method. In this way, the daily production line utilization time increased from 8 hours to 14 hours, and the operating time of the automobile production line increased from 250 days to 300 days.

After collective discussion, the Chenjun Mohists thought that it was time to expand production capacity and seize the market, and were willing to implement this policy temporarily, but this policy would only last for three years at most. After three years, the 8-hour, 5-day work system would be restored, and during the period of implementing the -hour, -day system, the factory's year-end bonus would increase by three months' salary each year to compensate for the loss of the craftsmen. After all, the Mohists could still calculate the numbers of , , , and .

Zhuo Wangsun was puzzled and said, "This is too wasteful. We can implement three shifts, so that the production line can continue without stopping, and the production capacity can be increased by one third."

At this time, Zhou Qiu, the master craftsman of the Mohist School, said: "Night shifts are too harmful to the body. There is no need for it. We in the Mohist School will not implement a three-shift production method."

Zhuo Wangsun said regretfully: "But this way you will make less money, especially in the current market competition. If you produce one less car, your competitors will have one more car in the market."

Zhou Qiu disagreed, "We improve production efficiency to make life better, not to turn people into production machines. If it weren't for grabbing the market, I wouldn't even want to implement two shifts. Two shifts make it difficult for craftsmen to gather together to learn knowledge, and it's also difficult to organize craftsmen to participate in the management of the Han Dynasty."

The Mohist School never forgot to make the craftsmen become managers and the masters of the factory. If all the time was spent on overtime, the craftsmen would be exhausted and would have no time to learn and manage the organization. Therefore, in Chen County, the Mohist School strictly prohibited overtime. They must fully guarantee the craftsmen eight hours of freedom outside of work and sleep. These eight hours are the key for the craftsmen to become the masters of the Han Dynasty.

They also managed the lives of Mohist craftsmen after get off work. They would organize craftsmen with poor skills to learn techniques, set up Mohist societies in each factory, cultivate the management skills of craftsmen, let them manage themselves, and then expand the scale of management to residential areas and even county towns. Chen County had 34 counties, of which 29 were Han officials who were Mohists. Most of the county sages and county sages of Chen County were of Mohist origin.

In other counties, the role of sages may be just a decoration, but in Chen County, they have truly become the masters. The sages of Chen County can supervise the Han officials and the projects at all levels in the counties and counties. As long as there are problems, these sages will seize them and ask the Han officials to explain.

Moreover, the Mohists would gather the craftsmen and explain the county documents to them little by little in easy-to-understand language, so that they could understand whether a policy to be implemented would be harmful or beneficial to them, and who would benefit from it. Which policies would be beneficial to Chen County in the short term, and which policies would be beneficial to Chen County in the long term.

Every year, the Mohists explained to the craftsmen the fiscal revenue and expenditure of Chen County, the fiscal revenue and expenditure of the county and township one by one, where the tax revenue of Chen County came from, how much each class contributed, how much the expenditure was, how many infrastructure projects were built, how many engineering projects were done, and then when checking every expenditure in the project, as long as there was one unreasonable item, the Mohists would immediately ask the county governor, county magistrate, and the project official to explain. The right of supervision was fully exercised by the Mohists.

It is not without complaints from Han officials in Chen County to the court that the Mohists had become the masters in Chen County and were influencing the court's administration.

But now the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty is Chen Lei, an elder of the Mohist school, who is pretending to be a leader of the Mohist school.

Who is in the hall!

How dare you sue me!

The Mohists truly trained craftsmen as the masters of the Han Dynasty. It was because of such strict supervision that most of the Han officials in Chen County were of Mohist origin.

Now most of the factories in Chen County work from 9 to 5, plus two hours of study time. That is, Mo Jia knows the importance of the automobile industry to Chen County, so he allows two shifts.

Wang Lun shook his head and said, "You don't make money when you have it, and you don't seize the market when you have it. Sooner or later, you Mohists will learn a lesson."

They can accept the eight-hour work system, but they find it hard to accept not making money. A production line worth hundreds of millions of dollars is just sitting idle, which is simply a sin. It is precisely because they understand the situation in Chenjun that they are unwilling to set up industries in Chenjun.

Zhou Qiu said with disdain: "You people have not changed in decades. You only know how to exploit craftsmen like cattle and horses, and you can't do anything with a little technical content. This production line has gone through three years of construction, modification and adjustment. The front-line craftsmen have put forward thousands of suggestions, made 18 major changes, hundreds of minor changes, refined the production process, and improved production efficiency. The production capacity of the assembly line has increased tenfold from the initial annual output of thousands of cars to the current annual output of tens of thousands of cars. This is all thanks to the craftsmen.

You only know how to work overtime to increase production capacity, and waste the energy of craftsmen on useless repetitive work, but the front-line craftsmen do not think, summarize, or put forward suggestions for improvement. How can the production efficiency be improved? "

"We Mohists will learn a lesson, but you have seen such advanced production lines in other counties of the Han Dynasty."

Wang Lun was speechless. They had to admit that the car factories they had seen were all handicraft workshop-style car factories, where the production of cars depended on a master craftsman and several apprentices to assemble them bit by bit. Kuaiji County did have a car factory with an assembly line, but its production capacity was far less than the one in front of them.

(End of this chapter)