On October 25, the tenth year of the Xuanli reign, Fu Xiaoguan left Wofeng City and inspected Wofeng Road for the first time.
Accompanying him was Zhuo Donglai, and of course his bodyguards Ning Siyan and Xu Xinyan were also there, while Zhang Pei'er stayed in Wofeng City.
"A country's strength lies in its economy, politics and military."
“The economic base determines the superstructure, so the economy is the foundation of a country’s strength.”
"But economics is closely linked to politics. Different political systems, even if they employ the same economic measures, will ultimately produce vastly different outcomes... The so-called liberation of productive forces is essentially about breaking down political barriers."
"It's like loosening the economy. Under an unstable, unclear and unrestricted political structure, no one dares to invest or consume."
In the carriage, Fu Xiaoguan and Zhuo Donglai sat opposite each other, and he was talking excitedly.
"The merchants of the Yu Dynasty dared to invest and build factories on a large scale in Wofengdao. This is based on the confidence of the Yu Dynasty court's reform measures. As long as this policy remains unchanged, the revitalization and prosperity of the Yu Dynasty is inevitable."
Zhuo Donglai listened very carefully. The reform measures of the Yu Dynasty were strongly promoted by the prince in front of him. In fact, the merchants of the Yu Dynasty dared to invest because they trusted Fu Xiaoguan to a greater extent.
So he thought for a moment and said, "If you go back, I'm afraid these merchants will..."
Fu Xiaoguan waved his hand. "No, I might be having an impact now, but in a year at most, when the merchants on Wofeng Road have truly made money, more people will come to Wofeng Road. My influence will gradually diminish, and eventually, all of this will be governed by the rule of law... The law is the rule, the standard, the bottom line, and the rules."
"As long as the law remains unchanged, the rules will not change. So no matter who comes to Wofengdao in the future, as long as they don't change the law, everything will proceed according to plan."
"So whether it's a road or a country, the rule of law is the foundation. Rule of man... will become variable due to the replacement of people, which is instability. So I want to legislate for business, and I want Xi Xunmei to refine the law.
These laws have now been implemented in the Wu Dynasty. We may not see much effect now, but once the merchants of the Wu Dynasty become familiar with them, the Wu Dynasty's commercial reforms will be much easier, especially with the example of Wofengdao.
Zhuo Donglai stared at Fu Xiaoguan in amazement. He naturally knew about the business laws implemented by the Wu Dynasty. He even knew that Sitong Money House had now been established in Guanyun City.
In this case, His Highness had already been planning for the Wu Dynasty and had already made his moves.
Suddenly, he felt that this prince was a little strange.
He is completely different from the young man who once participated in the literary meeting in Wu Dynasty!
What he talked about was not poetry or prose, but the way to govern the country!
This way of governing the country refreshed Zhuo Donglai's cognition. Only then did he understand the importance of economy to a country. He also understood the purpose of Fu Xiaoguan coming up with so many detailed laws.
What he is promoting is an unprecedented great change - to transform the entire society from rule by man to rule by law!
But is this really possible?
After all, there is only one person at the pinnacle of power in any country!
This man is above the law!
He said that as long as one is a human being, there may be variables. If the person holding power denies the law and changes the rules...wouldn't everything he has done be wiped out in an instant?
A so-called wise ruler is generally one who does not make trouble. If he can relax the power in his hands, he can be called a sage ruler.
But if we look closely at the history of various countries over the past thousand years, there are very few emperors who did not cause trouble.
"Power is like a feast for the gluttons. To sit there, looking at this feast without taking any action, requires tremendous self-control. Such people are rare indeed. Even if I were in that position, I'm afraid I would find it difficult to resist the enormous temptation.
So… that gluttonous feast must be locked in a cage, so that no one can eat it even if they want to. Only when they can’t eat it will they give up and turn their attention elsewhere. But I’ve gotten off topic. Now let me tell you what you’re going to do next.”
Zhuo Donglai didn't understand how to put the big meal in the cage, but he vaguely felt that Fu Xiaoguan's words were very meaningful, but Fu Xiaoguan didn't explain it to him in detail.
"Now, all ten of you have positions in the Secretariat and the Inspectorate. With these positions, you can freely travel to any county. Throughout the next year, you must observe more!"
"What are you looking at? Of course not just for fun. You should look at the essence of business! You should see the factors that hinder the rapid development of business, identify these factors, and try to solve them."
"All means must serve the economy. The economy is a huge subject. It's not just about setting up workshops for production and sales. It involves every aspect of society."
Fu Xiaoguan taught Zhuo Donglai as if he was giving his last words. At this moment, Zhuo Donglai once again felt how small he was and how great Fu Xiaoguan was.
This made him ashamed.
The boy's once proud head was completely lowered in front of Fu Xiaoguan at this moment.
That is a man who makes the world dance!
The ability I once thought was so great was nothing compared to him!
He was humble and listened very attentively. There were many concepts that he could not digest, but he engraved them in his mind. This is a good way to learn. When he verifies them one by one in the future, he will gain more profound insights.
Fu Xiaoguan talked for a full hour, trying to instill the importance of economy into Zhuo Donglai.
Zhuo Donglai was silent for a long time before he looked up at Fu Xiaoguan.
"Next year... could you not go fight the barbarians yourself? War is full of uncertainties. The Wu Dynasty needs you!"
These words came from the heart. Zhuo Donglai really didn't want anything to happen to Fu Xiaoguan.
Fu Xiaoguan grinned and looked out the window.
The autumn outside the window is a little stronger, but the wild chrysanthemums are still in full bloom, dyeing the vast fields yellow.
"Military... The Divine Sword Army has 30,000 soldiers in Xishan, and Emperor Xuan will train 100,000 such soldiers next year. The military strength between the two countries now seems equal, but in fact, the military strength of the Yu Dynasty has surpassed that of the Wu Dynasty.
The soldiers of the Divine Sword Army were from the Yu Dynasty, so they had to be counted as part of the Yu Dynasty's military strength. And now the Yu Dynasty's army was equipped with at least 60,000 flintlock rifles... They had to fight the barbarians.
If I went to the battlefield, this battle would be more exciting.
Besides...it's also to show the Yi Kingdom, I don't like fence-sitters."
Fu Xiaoguan's words were a little awkward, but Zhuo Donglai understood that Fu Xiaoguan wanted to weaken the fighting power of Yu Dynasty!
Especially weakening the combat effectiveness of the Divine Sword Army!
"They... were created by you!"
"So I need them to build a great empire for the Yu Dynasty! This is the last thing I will do for the Yu Dynasty."
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