back to ancient times to be emperor

Chapter 254
Seeing Lu Chengqi so happy, the honest man Li Jie was not at all "uncomprehending", and said: "But this white stack...well, it's cotton, and it doesn't produce much..."

Lu Chengqi was taken aback when he heard the words, his originally happy expression froze there, and he didn't know what to say for a long time.This is also because he was too happy too early. The economic value of this cotton has not been discovered by the ancients, so how could he grow it?Besides, only the people in the south gradually realized that this cotton is better for keeping warm than linen clothes made of plant fibers.

Even so, the transmission route of cotton is very slow.According to Li Jie, cotton has been found in the Yellow River and Yangtze River basins one after another, but they are only sown on barren land with insufficient soil fertility, and the cotton is very scarce. Can more than ten pieces of clothes be made in one mu of land? It's hard to say.

At that time, there was no spinning wheel for spinning cotton, and clothes were made of linen clothes sewn in two layers, filled with cotton wool, which looked bulging and bloated.But the effect of keeping out the cold is obvious, and Li Jie also suspected in private, how did Lu Chengqi know this, is there really someone who knows it from birth?
This idea only existed for less than half a quarter of an hour, and then it was forgotten by Li Jie.He is a courtier who attaches great importance to the rules and regulations, and it is very disrespectful to talk about the emperor secretly.

After synthesizing the reports of the government offices of the Ministry of Industry in various places, Li Jie found that the area of ​​cotton planting has spread all over the south of the Qinling Mountains. Except for Suzhou and Hangzhou, which are rich in silk, the people in the south are aware of the benefits of cotton.Those who have room will plant one or two acres of land to prepare for the severe winter.

Lu Chengqi understood the embarrassment of cotton production, frowned and said, "Does Li Qing have a solution?"

Li Jie took out a piece of cotton that had just been picked from his sleeve.Looking at this tiny cotton ball, Lu Chengqi frowned even more.The cotton in my memory should be much bigger than this!No wonder Li Jie said that the yield is too small. Even if such a small amount of cotton is planted on more than ten mu of land, there may not be much harvest!
Lu Chengqi asked cautiously: "Is this cotton that can be harvested?"

Li Jie said: "Your Majesty, that's right, this is cotton purchased from the farmers' homes in Jingzhao Prefecture. It is said that it came from Tianzhu. This thing grows very fast. Even if it is sown in mid-March, it will be ready in July." It can be harvested. I went to the field to inspect it in person a few days ago, and found that this product is extremely consuming of land. If the land is not left fallow afterwards, I am afraid that planting grain in the future will reduce the production a lot.”

Lu Chengqi also knew that cotton is an extremely land-consuming crop, so he thought for a while and said, "Li Qing can publicize the advantages of cotton, and at the same time warn farmers not to plant them on fertile land. If cotton can be cultivated intensively, the yield will definitely increase .But this cotton is so small, but there are other varieties?"

Li Jie was taken aback for a moment, he didn't understand what "variety" meant, so he asked without any thought: "May I ask Your Majesty, what is the meaning of the word 'variety'?"

Lu Chengqi also knew that some of the words he used were incomprehensible to the ancients, and it often took many explanations to understand what he meant.As for how to explain the word variety, Lu Chengqi felt powerless. After thinking for a long time, he tried his best to use simple sentences and said: "There is another kind of cotton, which is much bigger than this one, and the yield will be higher..."

Li Jie understood, but he was not sure whether there was any such cotton, but said: "I don't know, it will take time to find out. Don't worry, Your Majesty, I know the use of cotton and it is indeed beneficial to the people. If you can Made into cotton clothes, the people of Dashun can easily resist the severe cold in winter, and no one will freeze to death on the streets..."

Hearing what Li Jie said, Lu Chengqi felt a little guilty.Even in later generations, in extremely cold weather, homeless people who froze to death often happened, not to mention the ancient times when materials were scarce!Even if there is a thatched hut with wind leaking from all sides, when the snow is overwhelming, it is hard to guarantee that you will not be frozen to death!

Lu Chengqi was ashamed and relieved to hear that Li Jie cared so much about the common people.After Xu Chongguang, this is another official who can consider the common people!Lu Chengqi finally felt that he was no longer alone. Even if there were two more courtiers like this, he would not be alone in declaring war on this era.

The reason why reform was so difficult in ancient times was because the resistance of the diehards was too great, and the vested interest groups refused to give in half a step.This is destined to be a protracted war, not only to declare war on the diehards, but also to declare war on vested interest groups, but also to declare war on the entire era!It is impossible for one person alone to let the inertia of history stop the car.Even if you are the emperor, you can temporarily suppress it with power.But after a hundred years, can you guarantee that what you created will still exist?
Zhu Yuanzhang, the Ming Taizu in the official history, was so powerful that he thought that he had already set up the framework for his descendants to be emperors, and that his descendants only needed to be on the throne.As a result, he was no longer the prime minister, and the chief minister of the cabinet came out; he severely punished corrupt officials, and as a result, the corrupt officials in the Ming Dynasty were the most in all dynasties; Bankruptcy... the list goes on and on.

Is Zhu Yuanzhang wrong?No, he is great, dared to declare war on the times, and achieved certain victories.But he still did not jump out of the limitations of history, nor did he let the inertia of history deviate from the original track.After all, the imperial system has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people for thousands of years, and the historical inertia is too great to be promoted by individual strength.As strong as Zhu Yuanzhang, it doesn't seem to work.

So, when Lu Chengqi realized this, he began to look for teammates.At present, Xu Chongguang is still a good helper, and now there is another Li Jie.Together with Tang Xun, Su Song, Shen Kuo and others, Lu Chengqi is not alone on the road ahead.

Hearing Li Jie's words, Lu Chengqi was filled with emotion, and then said: "Yes, if I can achieve this step, no matter how much effort I put in, it will be worth it. Of course, I have to entrust Li Qing with this matter. I have already done this. I entrust the matter of cotton to you. I want to see that within three years, the people of Dashun can wear cotton clothes!"

Hearing the big cake drawn by Lu Chengqi, Li Jie felt passionate in his heart.He was only in his 20s, and he was eager to make contributions. He was full of passion and moved forward bravely. He immediately bowed and said: "Your Majesty has entrusted me with great trust, and I will do it with all my heart!"

Lu Chengqi hurriedly got up to help him up, and said: "Li Qing, you can't do this! I have also considered that you are too young to hold a high position, and I am afraid that some people will not accept it. If you don't have some achievements in politics, it will not be enough to convince the public. The matter of cotton , is the time for you to show your skills!"

(End of this chapter)