Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Chapter 765: Update Method
"I wonder what method it is?" everyone asked hurriedly.

Jia Cong said: "First, open up trading ports and promote foreign trade. Currently, there are only a few ports in the imperial court that allow trade with foreigners. They are too few.

It is true that we have a large family, a vast territory and abundant resources, but the barbarians also have many good things, why can't we enjoy them?

Our good things, such as silk, porcelain, tea, etc., are much more popular in that country, so why not sell more of them and make a fortune. "

Someone said: "Your Highness, the reason why we restrict trade with the barbarians is that our country is rich and prosperous, and we have everything we need, so we can be self-sufficient.
Secondly, they feared that the people would pursue profit, abandon farming and join business, which would shake the foundation of the country;
Third, I am afraid that the foreigners’ ingenious things will be introduced into the country, and the people will scramble to imitate them, thus corrupting the simple folk customs. "

"That's right. That's why, since Taizu, private trade has been restricted and only a limited number of companies are allowed to trade with the barbarians." said the ministers.

Jia Cong shook his head and said, "These reasons are untenable. If we say that our dynasty has everything, our guns and cannons are far inferior to those of the barbarians. Why don't we buy them?

This is just a side note. The most important thing is that the barbarians have already begun to develop natural sciences. If we still cling to books from one or two thousand years ago, we will suffer a great loss in the future."

"Your Highness, what is natural science?" someone asked.

"Your Highness, are you going to deny the teachings of Confucius and Mencius and the learning of the sages?" someone protested.

When these words were spoken, everyone in the court was shocked and whispered to each other. No one knew what Jia Cong meant. Was he really going to take action against Confucius?

"Silence!" The Censor shouted hurriedly when he saw the noisy and chaotic court.

The crowd gradually quieted down.

Jia Cong waved his hands and said, "I have always respected the teachings of Confucius and Mencius. The contemporary Duke Yansheng is also a good friend of mine. How could I abandon the teachings of the saints?

The eight-legged essay system for selecting scholars has its own reason, and I have no intention of making a big change. The Empress Dowager said that the rule of the literati and officials will not change, and I deeply agree with her. "

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. This was the fundamental problem and everything else was easy to solve.

"As for natural sciences, for example, arithmetic, as you all know, is what the Western barbarians call mathematics, and it is the foundation of all natural sciences.

To be fair, there were indeed many great mathematicians in ancient China, but their abilities have gradually declined in modern times.

If you learn this, you can only be an accountant, not an official. Smart people are studying eight-part essays, but this thing is extremely important, it can be called a national treasure, and it must not be missing! "

The ministers secretly complained and sneered, saying that arithmetic is just addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. It is useless and not important.
Seeing the contemptuous looks on everyone's faces, Jia Cong smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "Who in the court is proficient in this?"

Everyone said, "The Imperial Observatory is the best at this."

"pass."

Soon, the Imperial Observatory's official who had predicted Jia Cong's fate came to the palace.

Jia Cong said, "Master Tu, I heard that you are proficient in arithmetic. The masters all think that arithmetic is useless. Can you tell them what arithmetic can do?"

Tu Fa hurriedly bowed and said, "Yes. Arithmetic is profound and extensive. I have studied it all my life but have only mastered the basics.

As for its uses, at the most general level, it can be used to calculate the movement patterns of the stars in the sky, and can also be used for feng shui, finding dragon points, and large-scale construction.

It can be used for practical purposes, to calculate the money and food supplies in the world, and to build huge warships. Even the golden palace we are standing on cannot be built without accurate calculations. "

After hearing what he said, the ministers put away some of their contempt, but they still disagreed. After all, it was just a strange and tricky trick, not the right way.

Jia Cong said: "I will give you an example, and you will know how big the gap is between us and the barbarians. Do you know the value of pi?"

"I know." Everyone nodded. They all had some basic math knowledge.

"Master Tu, what is pi?"

Tu Fa bowed and said, "Your Highness, the ancients have calculated using the method of dividing a circle. The circumference of a circle with a diameter of ten feet is between three feet, one foot, four inches, one minute, five centimeters, nine millimeters, two seconds, and six seconds, and three feet, one foot, four inches, one minute, five centimeters, nine millimeters, two seconds, and seven seconds. The constant is unfathomable."

Jia Cong sneered, "That's only seven digits after the length of the zhang. Do you think that's accurate enough?"

All the ministers said: "It is almost the Tao."

Tufa was also quite arrogant. He didn't believe that the barbarians could know such advanced knowledge.

Jia Cong sighed, "Master Tu, if I told you that there is a colleague of yours in Xiyi who has calculated pi to the hundredth digit, would you believe it?"

Tu Fa was shocked and said in a lost voice, "This is absolutely impossible! To calculate to seven numbers, one must divide the circle into 24,576 polygons and then calculate the lengths of their sides. To calculate to a hundred numbers is absolutely beyond human ability."

Jia Cong smiled bitterly and said, "It's not that human power cannot do it, but the circle-cutting method itself has its limitations. For example, the best bow and arrow in the army, the Shenbi bow, has a maximum range of 240 steps, while the musket bullet can shoot 700 steps away.

No matter how sophisticated your bow and crossbow are, they can’t beat muskets and cannons. It’s that simple. So you have to change and learn!”

Tu Fa was the most impressed and bowed, saying, "If the Western barbarians really have this magical skill, I am willing to travel across the ocean to study it."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "We will discuss this later. Let's get back to the subject and talk about trade. What I just said was just to prove that the Celestial Empire is not perfect and must learn from its strengths to make up for its weaknesses.

If you are worried that the rise of commerce will lead to the pursuit of profit by the people, neglecting farming, and corrupting the customs, this is also simple. The Ministry of Revenue can set up a government office specifically for foreign trade, manage the business of all merchants in the country and the foreigners, unify the pricing, and collect business taxes, so that merchants don’t have to bargain with each other, which would allow foreigners to get a bargain. "

Feng Yuan was overjoyed. This was a big piece of fat meat. He hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will definitely get it done."

Jia Cong said: "You can't just see the disadvantages and ignore the advantages. With the rise of commerce, the court can make a lot of money just by collecting customs duties. If the land tax is reduced, won't more people farm the land?
If that doesn't work, we can just go to foreign countries to buy grain. Are you afraid of starving to death when you have mountains of gold and seas of silver?"

Feng Yuan smiled and said, "Your Highness is right. If there is really less grain on the market, the price will be high. People who grow grain will see that it is profitable and will work hard to cultivate it. Wouldn't there be more grain?

Therefore, everything has its own way, and there is no need for the court to interfere. You are just worrying about nothing."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "This is called the law of the market."

"Your Majesty is wise."

The two of them sang the same tune, shocking the ministers. They wanted to object but couldn't find any good reasons. "Let's not discuss this matter anymore. Let's start the business first. I think with Feng Zhongtang in charge, the court will not suffer any loss." Jia Cong said.

Feng Yuan patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. If the barbarians take advantage of us, I will resign."

"By the way, the Empress Dowager appointed Prince Zhongxin as the Grand Master of the Imperial Clan the other day. He is now in charge of the royal family's assets. Let's bring him along to handle this. With the two of you here, I think the barbarians won't be able to take advantage of you." Jia Cong said with a smile.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will go to discuss with Your Majesty the Zhongxin after I dismiss the court officials." Feng Yuan said with a smile.

"As for the opening of trading ports, it's up to you, Feng Zhongtang. There are only a few ports like Nanjing and Guangzhou. I mean we need to expand the scale to facilitate the entry and exit of goods, while ensuring that the court can control it. You can discuss how many ports to open and where to open them after studying them."

"Yes."

"Secondly, we should learn from the West and build factories and mines. The first thing to develop is the military industry. The imperial court will invest in the introduction of Western machinery bureaus, gunpowder bureaus, arsenals, steel mills, shipyards, etc., so as to form the Celestial Empire's own military industry system as soon as possible. We will also build a navy, purchase firearms, and train new troops. The General's Office will coordinate all of these.

As for civilian factories, please ask Jiang Zhongtang to be in charge, and the Ministry of Revenue and provincial governments to be responsible for the specific matters.

By the way, don’t restrict women from working to supplement the family income. Not only should you not restrict them, you should encourage them. The ancients said that women are as good as men. It is a good thing for women from ordinary families to have a job and earn money to support the family.

Anyone who dares to use etiquette, customs, ancestral rules and clan rules to suppress female workers is defying the imperial court's policies. Regardless of whether they are officials or civilians, they should be killed or executed, and all should be punished severely. "

"I will obey the king's order." Jiang Feng bowed as he left the team.

The New Party members were shocked by Jia Cong's "ultra-new law". Isn't this too new? Even women were not spared?

"There is one more thing. The Honglu Temple is to select one thousand poor young men every year, between the ages of twelve and fifteen, with calm and resolute temperaments, and who are willing to study and serve the court. After consulting with the Western Barbarians' envoys, they will be sent to the West to learn the skills of the barbarians.

At such a young age, they left their hometowns and traveled across the ocean, which was extremely difficult. The court gave each of them five taels of silver per month as tuition, hoping that they would complete their studies and return home as soon as possible.

Every year, we follow this example and send smart students from poor families to study in the West. These students are called government-sponsored students.

The Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Kong Yanghua, hurried out and said, "I will obey the prince's order." But in his heart he was thinking that this was a very good job and he would be able to benefit from it as long as he cut a little from it.

Jia Cong glanced at him, knowing what he was planning, and said calmly: "The Ministry of Revenue should fully allocate the expenses of the overseas students, and the Jinyiwei and the Censorate should strictly monitor it. If anyone dares to meddle in it, they will be severely punished.

The Honglu Temple will no longer be a low-paying government office. We will have to deal with the barbarians more often in the future. From now on, we must vigorously recruit and train talents who can speak the barbarian language and know the barbarian writing, in case of emergency."

"I obey your command." Kong Yanghua took a deep breath, knowing that Jia Cong was from the Jinyiwei and would be difficult to fool, so he gave up the idea of ​​embezzling money and thought to himself that doing his job honestly might not be without benefits.

"In addition, the Honglu Temple is also preparing to establish a consulate in the West and send personnel to be stationed in the West." Jia Cong said.

Kong Yanghua asked hurriedly: "Your Majesty, what is this consulate?"

Jia Cong thought for a moment and explained, "It is an office representing the imperial court in the Western Yi country. The consul is equivalent to a permanent envoy. He must communicate with the barbarians and protect the interests of the merchants and students of the Celestial Empire there. Do you understand?"

All the ministers nodded to show that they understood, but they were secretly shocked. Who would be willing to be an official thousands of miles away?
Jia Cong smiled and said, "You all don't want to go, right? This is human nature, and I don't want to go either.

As the saying goes, a big reward will always bring a brave man. It is decided that the consul is a third-rank official, with a six-year term. After the term is completed, he will be given an important position in the country. Anyone who is a seventh-rank civil servant or above in the capital can recommend himself and the best will be selected for the position. "

The ministers were in an uproar. If this happened, the number of people willing to go would probably flatten the threshold of the Honglu Temple. Not to mention the seventh rank, even the fifth rank would have many people willing to go. Who wouldn't want to go after enduring six years of hardship and being promoted several levels?
Jia Cong added: "The last thing is that the Ministry of Personnel will take the lead in establishing two academies, one called the Celestial Academy of Sciences and the other called the Celestial Academy of Engineering."

Wu Zizhen, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, said, "I don't know what these two academies are used for. Your Majesty, please let me know."

Because Lin Ruhai committed suicide, the Left Vice Minister Bian Qing was beheaded by Jia Cong and there was no time to fill the vacancy. Now he is in charge of the Ministry of Personnel.

Jia Cong said: "The Academy of Sciences is a place to study arithmetic, physics, chemistry and other natural sciences. Don't ask me what physical chemistry is, it is a Western theory.
The Institute of Technology is a place where all kinds of craftsmen and artisans in various fields are beneficial to the national economy and people's livelihood, such as shipbuilders, bridge builders, architects, metallurgists, weapon masters, etc.

According to their level of knowledge and merit, they will be awarded ranks, with the highest rank being the third rank."

The ministers were immediately in an uproar. No matter what the Censor said, he refused to listen. So, everything else was inferior, and only education was superior. Wouldn't that make it a joke?

If even craftsmen who build ships and bridges can become officials, why should we study? Can a strange and ingenious skill be compared with the writings of a saint?

Jia Cong raised his hand and shouted, "Everyone, please listen to me."

The ministers then reluctantly shut up.

"You all have misunderstood. My intention is not to make them equal to scholars. I just want to give those who delve into unconventional knowledge and skills a way to rise. It's just to grant them an empty position, a salary, and official uniforms. This is to show respect to the wise and humble."

He does not dare to shake the political system of civil servants governing the country now.

The ministers calmed down a bit. As long as they didn't let these peasants snatch the court's cake, everything else would be fine. The two lists of Jinshi were the right way, and this point must not be shaken.

“Only when a subject can be used as an official will people be willing to study it, which is beneficial to both the country and the people.

You all come from a background of imperial examinations and know well how difficult it is. Those who succeed in passing the examination are picked among tens of thousands. What about the rest of the students?
Many of them are smart people, but they are not good at writing eight-legged essays. If they change to studying arithmetic, mechanics and other subjects, they might become geniuses.

This is also in line with the sage's idea of ​​differentiating students into different categories and teaching them in accordance with their aptitude." Jia Cong said soothingly.

"Your Highness is kind and righteous, and we admire you." The ministers laughed and said that as long as he didn't take away their benefits, everything could be discussed.

Anyway, donating money to become an official is popular nowadays, and rich people all have official hats, but they are not worth much.

Wu Zizhen said, "I have a rough outline in my mind. I will present it to Your Majesty for your decision after I refine it."

"Good." Jia Cong nodded and said, "When the first batch of government-sponsored students return home after completing their studies, we can set up new-style Western-style schools in addition to the imperial examinations. They will serve as academic officials to train scientific and engineering talents. After passing the examinations, they will be recruited as officials of the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Engineering."

Wu Zizhen said, "Yes. This way, students from other schools can also have a chance to advance, instead of everyone having to squeeze into the imperial examination, where they often study hard for a lifetime and achieve nothing."

All the officials nodded in agreement. Diverting some people out of the examination would also ease the pressure of the imperial examination and reduce its difficulty. It would also be good news for scholars all over the world.

"There is one more matter to discuss with you gentlemen..." Jia Cong pondered.

(End of this chapter)