Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

Why did the Industrial Revolution occur in remote England, rather than in Portugal or Spain, which were stronger and had more favorable conditions at the time?

One hypothesis suggests that Atlantic trade shattered the barriers of England's social hierarchy, causing the power of the monarchy to be far weaker than that of Portugal and Spain.

Ordinary people could obtain huge benefits from maritime trade, and the profits were not monopolized by the royal family.

However, another country participating in the Atlantic trade also possessed such conditions.

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France.

Unfortunately, England gave birth to a genius whose theories were widely circulated in later generations, while also being repeatedly dragged out for criticism and refutation.

Malthus, the theory of population.

Means of subsistence increase arithmetically, while population increases geometrically. Therefore, it is a natural and eternal law that the increase in the means of subsistence cannot keep up with the growth of population.

To avoid the disasters caused by material shortages, population must be controlled.

The British did not believe in this set of ideas. Not only did they not believe in it, but they continued to practice the medieval culture of reproduction, producing offspring like crazy.

The French believed it, and successfully missed out on a crucial factor in the Industrial Revolution... population.

One is technological personnel who have left the land, and the other is a large number of free laborers.

With the right timing, geographical advantages, and popular support, and with national fortune descending, England successfully stepped onto the pulse of history and led an era.

Fang Zheng's previous life was that of a academic failure, without a doubt.

Those studies and memories from his previous life, except for emotion-filled experiences, have largely faded or even been obliterated during his decades-long life in Da Jing.

But humans have a powerful instinct: useful things are extremely difficult to forget and may even be regained.

As he gradually ascended to a high position of power in Da Jing, repeatedly throwing himself into the course of history.

Those forgotten memories were instinctively pulled from his subconscious, repeatedly deepened with the carving knife of real-world experience, even surpassing his previous life.

His shallow historical knowledge was the result of such a process.

Although it may not be completely accurate, he had already become aware of some problems...

Da Jing was originally a country with a solid foundation.

Due to his arrival, high-yield crops were rapidly popularized, and the population began a high-speed growth mode.

And the budding of capitalism and the great development of handicrafts happened to release a portion of free laborers from the land.

Scientific innovators were cultivated by him single-handedly, even leveraging the national treasury to catalyze this process.

As for the most crucial part, the imperial power, it was even more mysterious!

As the emperor, the most important thing is naturally to maintain the stability of his own rule.

However, through Fang Zheng's mediation, when no one realized the social unrest that technological progress might bring, huge benefits had already rushed in.

The huge benefits made everyone temporarily ignore the instability, and when someone later realized the root of the instability and wanted to change it, it became wishful thinking. No one had the courage to give up this intoxicating benefit, nor the ability to face the huge resistance generated by giving it up.

At this time, the great traditional culture came on stage and exerted its strength. It skipped a most valued link, stability.

But it produced a huge explosive force.

Benevolent governance and love for the people are essential qualities of an excellent emperor. Even if you don't have them, you have to pretend to have them. If you are unwilling to pretend, the entire court will rush up and force you to pretend!

Obviously, Emperor Jing didn't need to pretend; it had already become a habit.

With the opening of the Western Sea, the national treasury and the income of private merchants soared, and Da Jing implemented tax cuts nationwide. Second, a large amount of silver flowed in, and silver depreciated. The people's income increased, while the original tax burden remained unchanged, making it lighter.

The stock exchange opened widely. The people poured into the stock market, constantly enjoying the profits brought by overseas and Da Jing's development.

At this point, the conditions for truly fully initiating and sustainably promoting the Industrial Revolution were all gathered!

The right timing, geographical advantages, and popular support were once again complete, and a great era began.

Putting aside the normal historical trajectory, all of this was based on an exceptionally strange team configuration.

A great country with a rich foundation and vast territory, a group of enlightened rulers and virtuous ministers, and finally... plus a capable and exceptionally flattering transmigrator.

The great development of maritime trade, coupled with the technological explosion, not only did not impact the imperial power, but instead carried the imperial power to its peak.

And the imperial power not only did not suppress this unstable trend, but actively threw itself into it, using its own power to mobilize everything, fueling the fire!

A seemingly perfect closed loop succeeded, and Da Jing became an incomparably solid iron bucket, which no external force could break.

An unprecedented feudal empire that initiated the Industrial Revolution has been born in this world, and it is developing at a speed far exceeding that of a conventional Industrial Revolution.

But this seemingly perfect combination has a fatal flaw.

Everything is determined by one person, and the imperial power at its peak controls everything below.

However, it is impossible for every emperor to be an enlightened ruler. Once a mishap occurs, the consequences may be a war throughout the entire empire, leading to rapid disintegration.

Then history returns to the right track, power is tamed, and it truly enters a modern civilized order.

Fang Zheng had long foreseen this, but he never took it to heart, nor did he bother to think about it.

If this were to happen, it would be a matter of one or two generations later. By then, he would be buried in the ground. Why think so far ahead?

As an ancient person, the greatest belief is... to believe in the wisdom of future generations!

However, now that Li Zhi mentioned this matter, Fang Zheng felt greatly shocked, and suddenly felt a sense of urgency that he had to pay attention to.

Li Zhi stared at Fang Zheng, the enthusiasm in his eyes gradually turning into disappointment.

He thought Fang Zheng was an enlightened person, and that the two would resonate, but the other party was not even willing to talk about it.

On second thought, there was nothing wrong with this, after all, his position was what it was.

It seemed that he was ultimately thinking too much.

Li Zhi stood for a long time, and turned to walk out the door without saying a word.

Fang Zheng looked at his back, his temples kept throbbing, and finally couldn't help but say: "Stop."

"Where are you going, and what do you plan to do next?"

Li Zhi stopped and looked back at him: "This student will naturally return home and teach disciples. What I think is right, and since it is right, more people must know it."

He's really stubborn. It seems that if I don't solve this for him, this matter won't be over.

Fang Zheng sighed helplessly: "Do you know how much trouble such remarks of yours will cause if they spread?"

"Not to mention what the court will do to you, even the people of the world will attack you."

"The present is a time of prosperity, and all people are celebrating. Do you have any dissatisfaction with the court?"

Li Zhi turned around and said sternly: "Marquis, you live in the capital for a long time, and you can see the prosperity of the capital, but you cannot see the darkness of the distant frontiers."

"Although the world is in a time of prosperity, there are always officials who oppress the people, and if the officialdom does not change, this problem will never be eradicated. Since people are born equal, why must some always ride on the heads of others? The current Emperor is indeed an enlightened ruler, but people without distant worries will have near troubles, and what this student seeks is the future."

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