Great Wei Overlord

Chapter 981

Chapter 988
Wang Meng said again: "Is this a humble scholar?"

The guard said: "The examinee who fainted from hunger was dressed in tatters, and the top of the blue shirt on his body was covered with patches. It seemed that it hadn't been changed and washed for many days, and there was a strong smell. The soles of a pair of cloth boots were almost worn off. .”

"Poor thing!" Wang Meng secretly sighed all his life. In the era of powerful clan politics, poor people like Wang Meng had no chance to stand out at all. Unless they were willing to sell themselves as slaves and become minions of powerful clans, they would have no chance of being in the officialdom.During the most prosperous period of family politics in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the dynasty changed very quickly. Of course, one of the important reasons for this is that poor scholars need the opportunity to change their destiny. Before the imperial examination system, to change their destiny, they had to follow the barbarians or follow the dragon.

Even after the imperial examination system, this kind of story of poor family scholars has been staged many times.It is almost possible for a golden phoenix to fly out of the mountain nest and become a Jinshi, but the successful ones are very few.Most of them are stories about reading books for a lifetime until they exhausted all their wealth.

Thinking of this starving candidate, Wang Meng quickly thought of himself.If he hadn't met Ran Ming, he would have been as miserable as this candidate.Of course, Wang Meng was not a time traveler, and he had no idea that he chose to assist Fu Jian in history and became a famous minister of Di Qin and a famous prime minister in history.

"My lord, the road ahead has been cleared, shall we start our journey?"

"What about the examinee? Don't you care?" Wang Meng rushed to the guard and said, "Human life is too high. Even if these candidates fail to pass the exam this time, they may pass the exam in the future and become the pillars of the country." Wang Meng fumbled, Suddenly, I realized that I didn't have any money with me.Suddenly, I touched a jade pendant, which was given to him by Ran Ming. It is said to be Hetian (Hekou mutton fat jade became popular in the Qing Dynasty, and jasper was the most expensive jade before the Qing Dynasty.) Sheep fat jade, Worth a thousand dollars.Wang Meng pointed to a guard and said, "Take this jade pendant and go to a nearby pawnshop to pawn it, and take the money to treat this poor man."

Wang Meng entered the palace, and as soon as he entered the palace gate, Wang Meng felt an unusual smell.Wang Meng was worried because he hadn't been received by Ran Ming. After talking with Zhongchang Shi Youyi, Wang Meng knew that Ran Ming didn't meet him because Yan Yuezheng was right with Ran Ming.

Originally, the so-called schools of thought, a hundred flowers blooming, and a hundred schools of thought contending, many people thought that Ran Ming was just playing around, and the purpose was to win over the skilled craftsmen of the Mohist school. In it, Ran Ming's true purpose was exposed.

Now Confucianism can't sit still, and it doesn't matter if it loses the debate with a hundred schools. Anyway, Confucianism has been deeply rooted in the court.

Taking someone's money is like killing their parents, but cutting off a person's future is no less a feud than cutting off a person's wealth.But it doesn't matter. Although Confucianism has great influence, it is definitely not the leading force.In this world, the real authority is still in the hands of the emperor.The Confucians understand very well that it is not wise to go against Ran Ming, because Ran Ming has several academies in his hands, among which Fengle Academy has more than 3000 students. These students are not studying Confucian classics, they are all considered Ran Ming is a disciple of this miscellaneous family.As long as they dare to threaten Ran Ming with resignation, even if Ran Ming will compromise for a while, as long as this enmity is settled, there will be no way to resolve it.If these students of Ran Ming were allowed to be teachers, Confucianism would have no chance in the imperial court.Wei Guo currently has only more than 800 counties, 180 and eight counties, and more than 3000 officials.The academies of Ran Ming are fully capable of taking over the plate that Confucianism gave up.

Although Confucianism is dissatisfied with Ran Ming's approach, can they object?No matter how dissatisfied, dare to speak out?In order to become an official, you can even do things like swinging a knife from the palace, let alone changing the court?If Ran Ming wants Confucianism to disappear in the court, within half a month, at least half of the officials will leave Confucianism and become the disciple of Ran Ming, the master of miscellaneous studies.

Contrary to Wang Meng's guess, Yan Yue's performance to Ran Ming this time is not about Confucianism at all, but its core point is that "businessmen are not without benefits to the country."For traditional Confucianism, the idea that a businessman equals a final career equals a humble occupation is deeply ingrained, and it has always been politically correct!However, on the other hand, the increasingly rapid development of industry and commerce, and the emergence of more and more local tyrants among the people, made them have to face up to the problem of the rise of the power of merchants.

Whether it was Jia Yi back then or Chao Cuo, their famous works were basically expounding on such issues.The ministers of the imperial court naturally knew it a long time ago, in fact.The status of merchants grew rapidly as their wealth increased.Although the country needs business taxes, businessmen must not participate in politics. This is a principle that cannot be shaken.Yan Yue specifically pointed out that in certain places, rich businessmen are even more prestigious than dukes, and they are even more beautiful!
Ran Ming did not issue mandatory orders, but patiently explained to Yan Yue: "Without agriculture, there is no stability, without work, there is no strength, and without business, there is no wealth. How to deal with the problems between industry, commerce and agriculture, and the relationship between the two relationship?"

Yan Yue shook his head blankly.

Ran Mingdao: "Theoretically, of course it is based on agriculture, but in reality, it is impossible to deal with it according to the book. In ancient times, our industry and commerce were too weak, and our business was too small. Now Wei Guo It is very big. Even in the most prosperous period of the Han Dynasty, it was not as big as the state of Wei now. In the future, the state of Wei will be even bigger. If it does not develop industry and commerce, in a short period of time, the state of Wei has less land and more people, so it can use agriculture. Rapid development. But what about the future?"

"The population will grow rapidly as Wei enters a period of peace and stability. A single adult can conceive five or six sons in a lifetime, and what's more, it is not a problem to have dozens of sons. Of course, these sons will give birth to countless Grandson, if the food is enough for a family of five, it will take no more than 100 years for them to grow from five to one hundred people. Now the land in Wei is small, but what about 100 years later? Our land will be It’s not enough to grow enough. Farming alone can’t grow so much food, nor can it feed so many people. When the world is full of bankrupt farmers, the world will be in chaos. When we raise the flag of rebellion and fight for decades, Ten rooms and nine empty spaces, when people get tired from fighting, we will unify the world and restore peace and prosperity. This is a traditional vicious circle of Chinese civilization, and this is also the fate of our Chinese family."

Yan Yue said: "Your Majesty, what does this have to do with promoting business? Your Majesty, please forgive me for being dull, I don't understand what Your Majesty means!"

Even Kong Fu said anxiously: "Your Majesty said, I have never heard of it, please correct me!"

Ran Ming knew that these ministers had given him a lot of face.It was wrong that Ran Ming had always put on an attitude of promoting business and promoting business, as if he must scale up the huge scale of industry and commerce. "This issue is really, this issue is too sensitive."

Ran Ming is very clear that promoting business and promoting business has risen to the height of ideology.

Ran Ming gave a surprising answer to Yan Yue and Kong Fu's questions.Ran Ming said: "The people pay taxes, and the court must guarantee their interests. The relationship between the people and the country is more like a contract. If the court cannot guarantee the interests of the people, they will eventually be abandoned by the people. As the saying goes, those who win the hearts of the people win the world. Those who lose the hearts of the people lose the world. Now [-]% of the tax revenue of our Great Wei is obtained by merchants or businesses. The merchants pay a lot of taxes, so I naturally want to guarantee their interests. Before us, all taxes were collected from farmers, so important There is nothing wrong with agriculture. But now most of the tax revenue comes from commerce, and there is nothing wrong with commerce.”

Yan Yue said: "Your Majesty, that businessman values ​​profits and despises righteousness, how can he be treated as the same?"

"Priority over profit?" Ran Ming said without hesitation: "Businessmen value profit, but they are obsessed with the first grade of junior high school. You can see how those companies destroy their reputation? Are they short of money? Or bullying young people? No? In fact, I am also a businessman, and I hold a large number of shares in the Huaxia Chamber of Commerce and the Royal Bank of Wei."

Kong Fu boldly said: "Your Majesty, this is to compete with the people for profit!"

"Haha!" Hearing this, Ran Ming laughed and burst into tears: "It's a good sentence to fight for the interests of the people. I remember that the Confucian Mansion owned four textile factories, seven printing and dyeing factories, three paper mills, 22 oil mills, and light holes. There are as many as 3000 craftsmen under the name of the mansion, so didn’t the Confucian mansion compete with the people for profit?”

Hearing this, Kong Fu did not dare to refute.Although it is clear that no direct descendants of the Confucian family have ever operated these companies, they have always adopted a covert approach and hired professional managers who are not from the Kong family. The Kong family has equity but does not directly operate them.This cannot be said in the open, because Kong Fu refuses to accept this account today, and Ran Ming can completely annex these firms in the form of commercial competition tomorrow.

In fact, competing with the people for profit has always been a fig leaf for Confucianism. Ran Mingke is very clear that the wealth of the world is not static, and it is not like the mainstream cognition of this era. The more the country gains, the fewer the people. Wealth is created Yes, the more manpower and the more advanced the technology, the more wealth will be created.

Ran Mingdao: "Since the Three Emperors and Five Emperors, how long has it really been called a world of great rule? Kong Aiqing, Yan Aiqing, do you know what is the greatest wish in my life?"

"Could it be that Your Majesty's wish is Buenze and Sifang?" Kong Fu said anxiously.Kong Fu is actually getting more and more afraid of the emperor Ran Ming. It seems that you can't hide anything from him.

Ran Ming's voice became a little low: "The biggest wish in my life is actually very simple, my Huaxia will never be humiliated by foreigners again, so that my Chinese people will be upright no matter where they go, and they will not be looked down upon by others. Bow your head to others again. If I can do this, my wish has been fulfilled."

"Let me, the people of China, stand in the world and stop bowing to others."Yan Yue was taken aback again, "Your Majesty, is Wei Guo still being bullied overseas? Don't they respect Chaoshang Kingdom?"

"When the poor people in the north come to the south of the Yangtze River, they will still be discriminated against, and they will be called beggars, let alone a foreign country. If people respect our Chinese people, they must have a rich and powerful China behind them. Chaos, and fell to the Xiongnu, and the mountains and rivers were broken. How can people respect the people who have ruined their country and family, and what is there to respect?"

Ran Ming went on to say: "My people in China, in order to avoid the troubled times at the end of Qin Dynasty, started to travel overseas. The governor of Zhenyuan, Liu Qi, was originally the Liu family of the Yulong Tang Dynasty. He has lived in Zhenyuan for more than five hundred years. I don’t know how many people traveled across the oceans to avoid the disaster of war. Some of these Chinese people were killed by the natives, and some were imprisoned, like pigs and dogs.”

Yan Yue murmured: "We are a kingdom of the heavens, don't they fear the wrath of the heavens and raise their troops?"

"The so-called celestial kingdom is just the wishful thinking of scholars who stay at home." Ran Ming said: "The so-called tribute is actually trade. However, the past dynasties are still being taken advantage of. People come from afar to send some gifts, and we will be very happy." How could they not flock to them with so much interest? The so-called Siyi coming to court is just a scholar's dream, and the words of stealing the bell are not credible."

Eunuch Cao Zhen saw that the two couldn't react for a while, so he explained softly.He has been to the Western Regions and knows that what Westerners respect is strength. "Respect between countries depends on strength, and the same is true between people. After passing the Yangguan, no one recognizes our Central Plains country. Those barbarians from the Western Regions plundered on the Silk Road. The king repeated it again and again, but those horse thieves and sand thieves never stopped their brutality. Most of the gangsters under the banner of horse thieves and sand thieves were pretended by armies from various countries in the Western Regions. The Koreans and Buyeo respected them on the surface, but they occupied my homeland in Liaodong. I don’t want to return it at all.”

Kong Fu couldn't convince Ran Ming, and Yan Yue couldn't convince Ran Ming either, and the strategy of continuing to promote business was continuing to be implemented.

People must humiliate themselves, and then others can humiliate them.In Ran Ming's view, the so-called four-people system of scholars, peasants, and businessmen of the Chinese family is actually similar to the caste system of ancient India, and they are all unequal systems.When artisans are slaves, how does Kezhi develop, and when merchants become scourges, how does business prosper?

Scholars get an undeveloped stage in the country, and they will switch to Yihu, like Zhang Bin, Xun Chuo, and Pei Xian under Shi Zhao Shile, Gao Xu of Murong Hao, Fan Changsheng of Qingcheng during Li Xiong Li Te's period of the Di tribe, What's more, there is Wang Meng of Fu Jian, they are all the victims of family politics, because their studies are useless, they have no way to sell to the emperor's family, so they have to find another way out.

In fact, whether it is businessmen or scholars among the Han people, peasants are the most simple, but as long as any industry exists, it has its own way of existence. In later generations, the Chinese government spared no effort to ban pornography, but no matter how banned, pornographic places still bloom everywhere, and smuggling is still the same Like a torrent.Although Ran Ming was a boss of gangsters in later generations, he was also a businessman.So he looked at the problem differently from the emperors of the past dynasties.

Ran Ming doesn't want to engage in privileges. If everyone in the Han people is equal, and everyone has the space and opportunity to make progress, I believe that no one is willing to be a slave to a foreign race.As for how to implement the equality plan, Ran Ming currently has no good solution. He deliberately made the court chaotic by promoting a hundred schools of thought, in order to eliminate some pedantic Confucian officials.However, this plan failed completely.

The Confucianism that Ran Ming knows is actually through Ming and Qing film and television dramas or some "historical materials" that have been adapted beyond recognition.

These histories have been ravaged like bitches by shameless politicians, seriously misleading Ran Ming's judgment.In fact, Confucianism is the most flexible school of thought, as long as the court needs it, they will cater to it in every possible way.When the Mongols annexed China, they put forward the view that if you enter the barbarians, you will be barbarians, and if you enter China, you will be China.Not to mention just moving out the hundreds of schools of thought in the Spring and Autumn Period.Confucianism is practical and very practical.

Some great Confucians such as Yan Yue and Kong Fu began to revisit the six arts of a gentleman, and put forward the theory of investigating objects and extending knowledge. You must know that this theory of investigating objects and extending knowledge has no market within the scope of Confucianism, and each school and school have different interpretations.

In May of the second year of Hongshi, the first national imperial examination in Wei State had been over for more than five months, and Zhang Fang came in first with 47 points.After being screened by the Ministry of Officials, Zhang Fang was assigned to Buqigang and became an ordinary eighth-rank palm guard in Wei State.Zhanggu is the official name in ancient times. "Zhou Li" said that Xiaguan Sima belonged to Zhanggu. There were four superiors and eight inferiors, and there were Fu, Shi, Xu, Tu and other personnel below.

Zhang Fang, Zhang Gu, is actually a small official who manages warehouses and furnishings.However, the port is actually the port of Qingdao in later generations. Zhang Fang, the manager, manages 43 large state-owned warehouses.

The score of 47 points does not sound like much, but since 50.00% of the questions are miscellaneous studies that are not used by Confucianism, the best score in this imperial examination is only 72 points. Confucian rookie He Chengtian is the first The number one scholar in the imperial examination, while the Mohist Mohist Xie
However, since Wei Guo adopted the accounting method of Ran Ming's later imperial examinations, all accounts are clear at a glance. Zhang Fang's usual work is mainly the statistics of incoming and outgoing accounts and records of outgoing accounts.The work is easy. According to the original rank of the Han Dynasty, he was only an official of 12 shi, and when converted into coins, it was only 20 yuan, and he was in charge of the wages of the forty or so small officials below.This salary is not enough at all. If you don't get corrupt, you will starve to death.Now the state of Wei has adopted a policy of high salaries to maintain integrity. Zhang Fang is in charge of the accountants and other management personnel below. A salary of 20 yuan, and this [-] yuan is only his salary.

After becoming an official, Zhang Fang realized that things were not as he imagined.Now I have received more than 7 yuan in my hand, that is, more than 70 silver coins. However, as a port city open to the outside world in Wei State, the living consumption level is quite high. The most common two-entry small courtyard and the cheapest one also need 120 million yuan , even if he does not eat or drink, it will take six years to buy a yard.If you want a bigger house, you need 200 million or even more.

(End of this chapter)