jdhmnovel Chapter 573 Officials from Ningyang County... are indeed extraordinary.
Chapter 573 Officials from Ningyang County... are indeed extraordinary.
All kinds of food and daily necessities were items that merchants from vassal states like Korea and Annam needed to purchase.
There's no way around it; based on the core idea that "a large family business can allow descendants to squander it for a couple more years," the Zhongyuan Tang clan has always loved to desperately accumulate wealth, and they never refuse any land given to them by others.
Although for many people, Zhongyuantang was the one who came.
And territory is directly linked to population size.
A larger territory means more people can be supported.
With more people, the chances of a genius emerging are greater, and the harvest of resources will also be greater.
South Korea and Annam, among other vassal states, are not suitable. They lack the ancestral traditions of the Central Plains, which emphasize accumulating wealth, and they do not possess vast territories. Consequently, they lack the resources to cultivate talent and, consequently, they also lack various supplies.
Give the simplest example.
The sickle is something that requires virtually no technical skill.
If it were only used for harvesting wheat, Yang Shaofeng could simply stand next to the simple harvester and mock the sickle for being outdated.
However, this did not apply to vassal states such as South Korea and Annam.
Yang Shaofeng could freely mock the backwardness of the sickle because the Ming Dynasty had a much better harvester.
Although it is still very backward, it is still better than a sickle.
Park Sung-sung, Park Deok-hwan, and Do Soon-chin, however, had no right to mock the sickle; in fact, they had to find ways to buy sickles from the Ming Dynasty.
To unlock the technology tree of the sickle, one must first unlock some aspects of materials science, geology, and even ergonomics.
If the geology is not up to standard, iron ore exploration will not be possible.
If materials science is substandard, even with ore, qualified steel cannot be produced.
If ergonomics are not up to standard, even if you produce steel, you will not be able to make a sickle that is most suitable for human grip.
Therefore, Yang Shaofeng was not worried at all about how much money the Koreans and Annam could make from the Ming Dynasty.
Besides, even if they can make money, so what?
The Ming Dynasty also had things like glass cups and saucers, but even if you put those things in front of Koreans and monkeys, they wouldn't know how to make them.
Even if you tell them outright that it's made by firing sand, they still have to experiment countless times to find the best firing ratio and process.
This involves the knowledge of process management.
Although the requirements for these subjects are not high, they are extremely troublesome when combined.
Seeing Yang Shaofeng's disgusting expression of smiling without saying a word while holding the glass, Emperor Zhu finally couldn't help but curse: "You're just ripping people off! You sell this stuff made from a few grains of sand for ninety-nine strings of cash. Add some other things and call it a tribute item, and you probably can't even buy it for nine hundred and ninety-nine strings of cash. Your heart is completely black!"
WTF?
Yang Shaofeng stared wide-eyed at Emperor Zhu and said, "Nine hundred and ninety-nine strings of cash is still black?"
"Yes, this piece of junk is just made from a few grains of sand, but what can we do when those barbarians don't know how to make glass from sand?"
"The fact that it didn't sell for 9,999 strings of cash is all thanks to my son-in-law's conscience!"
Emperor Zhu gave a cold laugh, picked up two slices of mutton with his chopsticks, and put them into Empress Ma's bowl.
Yang Shaofeng rolled his eyes and sighed softly, "Take beef for example. If the people of the Ming Dynasty eat one more bite of beef, the herdsmen on the grasslands and the Koreans will have to eat one less bite."
The Emperor Zhu paused slightly as he was about to pick up some meat with his chopsticks.
That bastard, he never lets his revenge linger!
The more Emperor Zhu thought about it, the angrier he became, but at the same time, he felt more and more wronged.
Sister, this is the good son-in-law you said you wouldn't let us punish him!
This is how he treats his father-in-law!
That bastard!
While cursing Yang Shaofeng in his heart for being inhuman, Emperor Zhu continued to pick up a slice of beef.
"I am the emperor of the Ming Dynasty."
"It's a good thing that ordinary people can eat more beef."
"If other people's people can't get enough to eat, that's their king's problem, not ours."
After a slight pause, Emperor Zhu snorted coldly and said, "Remember to write to your good students and tell them that cattle on the grassland can be bought with sticks, but they cannot handle the transaction themselves. Don't let them all ruin their reputations like yours."
Yang Shaofeng was so angry he laughed.
What do you mean by "don't let your reputation get as bad as mine"?
No matter how bad my reputation is, it's still better than yours, old Deng.
Anyway, there won't be any of my ditch literature in future generations.
Just as Yang Shaofeng was secretly complaining, Emperor Zhu curled his lip and said, "Forget it, they don't have any reputation to speak of anyway."
Yang Shaofeng was furious.
What do you mean they have no reputation whatsoever?
Are the students I have taught not to be slandered at will?
Damn it, is it the Censorate stirring up trouble this time?
Emperor Zhu glanced at Yang Shaofeng and said, "No need to guess."
"Twenty-six people, twenty-five county magistrates, twenty-five of whom led yamen runners to rob things, and more than fifty county magistrates submitted memorials impeaching them for fishing beyond their jurisdiction."
"This is still the case for some people who are only in one or two counties nearby. If there were one county each in the east, west, north and south, I estimate that a hundred county magistrates would impeach them."
Yang Shaofeng was immediately stunned by what the Emperor Zhu said.
Fishing beyond permitted boundaries?
Why does this word sound so familiar?
Emperor Zhu sneered and said, "Don't understand? Then let's have a proper talk."
"The so-called cross-border fishing refers to these twenty-five county magistrates who, along with their yamen runners, went to the mountains or rivers near the county border to hunt and fish."
"Then, while they were catching fish, they ended up in other counties, and while they were fishing, they ended up fishing in other counties too."
"..."
Yang Shaofeng really wants to capture all these idiots and take them back to Ningyang County, and then ask them one by one just how stupid they must be to do such stupid things.
Emperor Zhu continued, "However, they are not entirely stupid; they know to use the pretext of hunting wild beasts and preventing them from harming the people to carry out their hunting activities."
"Moreover, these little rascals did indeed hunt some wild beasts, allowing the people to confidently cultivate new fields."
"It is somewhat useful."
At this point, Emperor Zhu couldn't help but sigh, and even began to doubt the feng shui of the Confucian Temple in Ningyang County.
If the feng shui of the Ningyang County Confucian Temple is not problematic, then why are these students from Ningyang County so infuriating?
This cannot be explained by the simple saying "If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too".
What's even more infuriating is that these little bastards have perfectly copied the shameless nature of that big bastard.
This time, he was impeached by more than fifty county magistrates, which is probably another messy affair.
I wonder if Liu Bowen and his ilk could figure it out.
Seeing Emperor Zhu sighing and lamenting, Yang Shaofeng felt a burning sensation on his face.
How could I have raised such a bunch of scoundrels?
They were all spoiled rotten by Jin'er and Yu'er!
……
While Emperor Zhu and Empress Ma were enjoying hot pot, Zhu Biao was suffering from a headache in the capital.
"An official from Ningyang County..."
Zhu Biao reached out and rubbed his forehead, sighing softly, "Indeed extraordinary."