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Volume 4 Leviathan 121 Reform

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    "Thank you, sir!" Shen Hongmao suppressed the excitement in his chest and bowed to accept the order.  "Master Shen, sit down and talk!" A frank smile appeared on Qi Zhiti's face: "You don't have to thank me, this is an offending mission. You should know that this dynasty has been engaged in foreign affairs for forty or fifty years, and relying on these  There are people who make a living in the factory. If you do this, you will destroy their jobs. I don¡¯t know how many people will be hated.  He will hold on to you and will kill you. Master Shen! "If you want to benefit the country, how can you avoid it for the sake of misfortune?" Shen Hongmao replied solemnly:  "We in our generation read the books of saints and sages in order to do something useful for the court and the country. How can we be greedy and cowardly to move forward just for our own gains and losses? After thousands of generations, I am afraid that I will be reviled by thousands of people in history!  "Well said, well said! Master Shen, you are indeed the true seed of scholars of our generation. After three hundred years of raising scholars, the efforts of all emperors have finally been settled."  Mr. Zao, what do you think?" Qi Zhiti turned his eyes to Hu Keqin and Zao Guoquan.  "I second the proposal!" Zao Guoquan responded.  "Master Shen must act with caution. It's better to be slow than to worry too much and ruin the important affairs of the court!" Hu Keqin said seriously.  "Thank you, Mr. Hu, for the tip!" "What about the next one? Master Shen?" At this point, Qi Zhiti smiled half-jokingly and half-seriously: "It shouldn't be as scary as the one just now, right?" "I don't dare.  !" Shen Hongmao glanced at Hu Keqin and said in a low voice: "Actually, the next two things are my suggestions together with Mr. Hu?" Qi Zhiti turned his eyes to Hu Keqin in surprise.  Keqin nodded slightly: "Yes, Mr. Shen! This time Mr. Shen and I went to Shanghai to issue public bonds. We encountered many things. The old man was quite touched and felt that some things had to be changed. Otherwise, to say the least, I'm afraid this  There will be a big problem in the court and this country in less than twenty years!" "Big problem?" Qi Zhiti showed a look of dissatisfaction on his face: "Mr. Hu, the emperors of this dynasty have been very kind and have nothing to do with their morality.  Having been blessed by my Dashun for more than two hundred years, even if there are some disasters, they can be eliminated gradually. Isn¡¯t what you said just now a little too much?  But now, I'm afraid something is wrong!" "What's the difference?" "Xiangong Qi, if China was established within the four seas three hundred years ago, the four borders would be nothing more than barbarians.  The army and horses are strong, but after all, the civilization and education are far inferior to that of our country, and the hearts of the people still return to the imperial court. But it is different now. Although the Western barbarians are known as barbarians, their civilization and education are not inferior to ours, and they are enough to compete with me.  If a conflict breaks out, who can say that the hearts of the people will definitely return to our Dashun? Secondly, in places like Shanghai and Guangzhou, there are no less than a million workers in the city.  Give them food and clothing. As the saying goes, hunger and cold will lead to thieves. If something happens, half of the southeastern part of the country will no longer be owned by the country!  After hearing Hu Keqin's words, Qi Zhiti couldn't help but change his face slightly. Indeed, just as Hu Keqin said, Dashun now has two problems that have never appeared in thousands of years.  First, the powerful countries Dashun faced such as England, France, and Russia were not only powerful in force, but also no less civilized than Dashun. Once defeated, they would not be assimilated to China as in the past. Therefore, Xia  Entering the barbarians rather than using the barbarians to enter Xia.  Second, due to the development of industrial economy and urbanization, a large number of proletarians have appeared in cities with relatively developed industries such as Hanking, Shanghai, Youzhoufu, Jinlingfu, and Guangzhou.  These ordinary people who live entirely on their own labor have nothing but their own hands. The nature of their work determines that they are accustomed to collaboration and unity, and the city they are in the center of the flow of people and information makes them unlike the farmers of the past.  Being so narrow-minded and ill-informed can easily lead to a well-organized rebel army.  Such a group of people is undoubtedly a potential threat to Dashun.  Once a crisis of one kind or another occurs, although the number of this class is not large compared to the country's total population of 40 million, the growth rate is astonishing.  Once these ordinary people with nothing are thrown onto the streets and face the threat of starving to death, it is not difficult to imagine how fierce resistance these people facing desperate situations will take.  Hu Keqin had seen the power of this strange class in Shanghai not long ago. As a loyal minister of the Dashun court, he was naturally worried about all this.  Qi Zhiti¡¯s face changed after hearing Hu Keqin¡¯s reaction to the rising rice prices and factory shutdowns in Shanghai, which led to thousands of workers taking to the streets to buy rice.?It becomes ugly to look at.  For this completely unfamiliar threat, there was no answer in all the Confucian classics he had read, so he asked Shen Hongmao: "Master Shen, what can you do about this problem?" "Ms. Qi, I think there are no two ways.  One: one soft, one hard!" Shen Hongmao leaned forward, stretched out his fingers to take a few drinks from the teacup on the coffee table, and started writing on the coffee table as he was used to.  "The so-called soft hand is to try every means to prevent these workers who live by their mouths from falling into a desperate situation. I said, 'Why should the people be afraid of death if they are not afraid of death?', in any case, these people are also the innocent sons of the imperial court and must be punished.  Leave them a way out!" "What Lord Shen said is true!" Qi Zhiti nodded. Shen Hongmao's suggestion just now was to his liking: "I think Lord Shen meant that it would be like when there were floods and droughts in ancient times.  Isn¡¯t it true that the imperial court should use money and food to provide relief? Instead of using it to support troops and suppress them, it would be a good idea!¡± ¡°Ms. Qi, yes, but not entirely!¡± Shen Hongmao explained with a smile: ¡°Shanghai, Han.  Although there are not many workers in Beijing and other places, there are still millions of them. On weekdays, there are no less than two to three hundred thousand unemployed people. If the economy is in recession, there will be even more if the government provides relief to these people.  The unemployed people will inevitably flock to the city. Will the imperial court pay for it at that time? " "This?" Qi Zhiti was speechless by Shen Hongmao's question. As Shen Hongmao asked just now, the imperial court's finances were already very poor.  Nervous, and if there is such a free lunch, a large number of bankrupt farmers from the surrounding villages will flock to the city to share it. How can they squeeze out money from their meager income to fill such a bottomless pit?  "Ms. Sir, as I see it, there are two ways. First, if you have worked in a factory, the factory owner must pay a certain amount of money to the government every month according to the number of workers they employ, and force themselves to save. Once the workers lose their jobs,  , you can temporarily obtain food and clothing for a few months from this money as a temporary transition to avoid violating the royal law due to hunger and cold, so that the court does not have to increase expenditures, and these workers are skilled workers, but because  They will only be laid off when the economy is in a recession. Once the economy recovers, it will be easy for factory owners to recruit skilled workers again, and they will not waste money on those lazy people who are indolent. " "What about the second one?  For those who have never worked in a factory, the government can also recruit them and provide them with free rice and porridge for three months. However, these people must engage in various jobs during this period as compensation, and at the same time learn various necessary livelihood skills.  . If there are still people wandering on the streets, they can be convicted or assigned to hard labor in mines or ports. In this way, good people can learn how to make a living, and if they are evil people, they can be strictly monitored and dealt with.  ! Okay! Okay!" After listening to Shen Hongmao's words, Qi Zhiti showed a satisfied smile: "Zhang Jiuling said, 'If you don't mention the prefectures and counties, you don't want to go to Taiwan'.  Chao, you are very capable of doing things, you can go directly to Taiwan Province!" "My husband is so complimentary!" Shen Hongmao quickly stood up and thanked him. At this time, he couldn't help but feel secretly happy. Qi Zhiti is now in charge of military matters.  It's a big deal if he says it softly or seriously.  "You should go back and think carefully about this matter first, draw up a plan, report it to the court, and announce it to the world. Such a good method must be grasped quickly!" Qi Zhiti said enthusiastically: "By the way, since the method is yours.  Come out, give this Dharma place a name!" At this time, Hu Keqin coughed and stroked the beard under his chin. Shen Hongmao thought of it and hurriedly bowed and said: "I am a low-ranking official with little knowledge.  I can't think of a good name at the moment, so I'd better ask Mr. Qi to come up with it!" "Well!" Qi Zhiti didn't hesitate. He thought for a moment and said in a deep voice: "Since this law was originally established to help the poor, then  Let¡¯s call it the Poor Law. This kind of place where the poor can learn the skills to make a living, then let¡¯s call it the Poor Law and the Poor Workhouse!¡±  It's a huge difference!" Shen Hongmao flattered quickly.  "Haha, a name is nothing!" Qi Zhiti waved his hand, smiling happily. It seemed that solving this problem made him feel very good.  At this time, Hu Keqin coughed and said in a deep voice: "Master Qi, although I think this method is good, it is better not to hand over the poor people's training center to the government!" "What does Hu Gong mean?  " "Mr. Qi, you and I have both been state officials. After doing this kind of thing, most of the money will go into the private pockets of subordinate officials. If only 10% or 20% of the money falls on the poor, it is considered  You have a conscience, and the government doesn¡¯t have that many manpower to distinguish who is a worker.Who are the refugees? Not to mention that everyone is only allowed to stay for three months. If anything happens, the court will be blamed.  It is better to let the factory owners pay for it themselves. If it is done well, it is the virtue of the court. If it is not done well, just replace it. No one can blame the court!  " "Sure enough, it is Lao Cheng who seeks the country!  "If Qi Zhiti's praise of Shen Hongmao just now was somewhat hypocritical, this compliment now comes from the bottom of his heart. People like Hu Keqin have figured out their escape route before doing anything. There is merit in doing well, even if something goes wrong.  This is the true level of a slick old bureaucrat. In comparison, Shen Hongmao only thinks about doing things but forgets to find a career. After all, his experience is still shallow.
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