Chapter 1104: What I Saw in Shanghe Village
The group quickly took a small boat to Xinhua County.
These boats were used by the Han tribe to sell goods everywhere during the Xin tribe period. Especially when they exchanged iron for copper, they dispatched a large number of these single-masted boats, which were only twelve meters long in total and had oars at the stern. Even without sails, such a small boat could move forward by paddling.
The boat quickly went upstream along the Qingshui River, and Gu Ji and Tian Hong stood on the deck and looked at the scenery on both sides.
The Qingshui River in Xinhua County was full of rice fields on both sides. In the past, there was only corn, the main food crop on Zhudao Island, and soybeans, but that thing could not be eaten as a meal. However, since the Han tribe set foot on this land, there are more types of crops here.
The Han tribe took corn and soybeans from here, and correspondingly sent rice and peanuts, as well as barley, wheat and other food crops. The exchanges between the two sides should have enriched their own food varieties.
However, since the Han tribe occupied Zhudao and turned it into Qiongzhou Island in the second year, rice has been promoted here.
Compared with corn, rice is more productive and more suitable for the island climate of Qiongzhou Island. In addition, rice is more nutritious and is a fine grain suitable for both young and old.
It is far from comparable to corn. Therefore, once rice was introduced, it was quickly welcomed by the local people. Now it has become a crop that the people must have twice a year. Throughout Qiongzhou Island, except for those places where the water source and terrain are not suitable for growing rice, most of the other places near the water source are full of rice.
In addition to the people weeding and farming in the fields, the two also saw some children on the deck of the bow carrying bamboo baskets to touch shrimps and crabs in the rice fields. If they are lucky, they can also touch eels and loaches, but this is just a little bit of luck. At least it can change the taste of the people.
In fact, if you really want to eat meat, Qiongzhou Island is no longer short of meat.
Before the Han tribe ruled here, there was a tradition of raising goats here. After the Han tribe took over the rule here, the types of livestock and poultry on Qiongzhou Island have also skyrocketed.
The most common animal should be rabbits, which are raised more than chickens and ducks. The next level is chickens and ducks, and then pigs and sheep.
The people can't finish eating rabbits, so how can they think about the shrimps and crabs in the fields? To put it bluntly, it's because the children like to play, so they go to the fields to touch shrimps.
Gu Ji, Tian Hong and others took a boat all the way to the city of Xinhua County. It's called a city, but it's actually very small. It doesn't look much bigger than Hanyang City.
This is because Zhudao was not run by the Han tribe alone. The people here already had villages where they lived. The Han tribe took over halfway, and it was very difficult to get them to move to the city to live. After all, it's hard to leave their hometown.
They soon found the county governor's office in this small city. After a simple report, Ye An and his men were summoned.
Entering the main hall, Ye An took the lead in greeting when he saw the anvil.
"Meet the Iron County Governor of Xinhua County!" He bowed slightly and made a bow.
Tiezhen hurriedly stepped forward to help the man up, holding his arm and asked.
"The Jinwu Guards beside the chief? Then we are our own people. I am also from the Jinwu Guards, but I have never been with the chief. I have always been responsible for field work. Later, after the war, I retired and became a county governor. What about you? What are you like now?"
"Haha, I know you, old senior. I am still a guard beside the chief. It's just that this time two tribe leaders from other tribes want to visit our tribe. The chief specially ordered me to lead them around, so I bothered the county governor." Ye An also responded politely.
"Hey, what are you talking about? We are all our own people. I will let you see whatever you want to see. How can I embarrass you?"
Because of the relationship with the Jinwu Guards, Tiezhen was very enthusiastic towards them. He personally asked the kitchen to prepare a few dishes and entertained Tian Hong and others.
At the dinner table, because Tiezhen was too far away from the center of the Han tribe, he was not very clear about the current changes, so he talked to Ye An about the current situation of the Han tribe.
As Luo Chong's personal guard, Ye An was at the absolute center of the tribe, so he had first-hand information, so he began to introduce Tiezhen to the changes in the past two years.
But he was not stupid, and he introduced Tiezhen to the information that could be made public, as well as outdated information. But even such information benefited Tiezhen a lot.
After the two of them communicated, Tiezhen finally understood the situation of Gu Ji and Tian Hong, so he became more enthusiastic towards them.
"I heard that you want to see the living conditions of the common people at the bottom?"
Tian Hong nodded immediately and said, "Yes, firstly, we want to know what life will be like for our people after they join the Han tribe, and secondly, I am very curious. The Han tribe used the army to seize the territory and population here. Are they so willing to obey the control of the Han tribe? Especially the matter of paying taxes to the Han tribe, I don't understand it!"
"Well, what's the matter? The fact that you have such an idea shows that you have too little knowledge. When the Xin tribe managed Zhudao, the Xin tribe collected heavier taxes from the people, and their government affairs were very chaotic. There was no fixed standard at all. The actual tax collectors often collected as much as they wanted.
"After we from the Han tribe came over, although we also collected taxes, it was lower than when the Xin tribe was here. In addition, our government affairs were more standardized. We would collect as much as we were told and we would never collect randomly because we had unified weights and measures, but the Xin tribe did not have them at that time.
"Although we collected taxes, we spent more of the money on the people. They can see that we spent money on the people, so of course they won't object." Tiezhen immediately introduced the situation here.
"Spend money on the people? How do you spend it?" Gu Ji asked puzzled.
"We did collect taxes from the people, but we used the money to build roads for the people, making it more convenient for people to travel between villages. We also built schools for the children, hired teachers, provided textbooks to teach them how to read and write, built canals for them, reclaimed new fields, bought seeds, farm tools, and livestock cubs for them, and hired people to teach them various techniques. The village also built a mill for them.
"We have done so much for the people. Although we collect taxes, these taxes are not collected in vain.
" "I know you are not a member of the Han tribe yet, and you may not understand the matter of paying taxes, but I still want to remind you. Just like the welfare measures I just mentioned, if the people do not pay taxes, what will the tribe use to build the people? Are those things all for free?
"For example, after you join the Han tribe, the tribe, that is, the local government office, must distribute crop seeds and livestock cubs to you according to your household registration, but the government office does not have these things, so where do the government offices get them from? They can only spend money to purchase them from the homes of people in other old counties, and then transport them to you. But if you don't pay taxes to the tribe, where does the tribe get the money from?
"The tribe did collect a little tax from you, but on the whole, the tribe did not collect it in vain, right? In the end, didn't it still spend it on you? "Iron Anvil also tried to persuade them again.
The two nodded and seemed to understand a little, but they still couldn't change their mind so quickly. After all, the Baiwu tribe was too primitive compared to the Han tribe. They were just in the transition period between farming and hunting and gathering. Under such circumstances, it was really difficult for them to immediately understand things like collecting taxes. After all, it
was their own product. Since you already have private ownership of it, why do you have to hand it over to the tribe?
"Well, you may not be able to understand this for the time being, but if you communicate more with the people, you will know what's going on. At that time, you can ask the people yourself why they are willing to pay taxes to the tribe. "
With the arrangement made by Tiezhen, the local county magistrate, the visit went much more smoothly. Tiezhen asked them to visit Shanghe Village, which was the focus of the new policy. After several years of rule by the Han tribe, the people of Shanghe Village have become very prosperous.
Those who migrated from the south have intermarried with the local big families and even have many children.
The people are living better and better, and the population is gradually growing. Now the village is full of children running around. This is a sign of prosperity.
If the people really can't make ends meet, let alone not giving birth to children on their own initiative, I'm afraid that the children they give birth to will be thrown directly into the pond and drowned.
After all, the abandonment of babies in disaster years was not uncommon in ancient times.
Gu Ji, Tian Hong, Ye An and other Jinwu Guards, led by a minor official in Xinhua County, suddenly visited Shanghe Village.
When they arrived at Shanghe Village, they saw many children running around in the village. Most of them were only two or three years old, and there were many The adults were working nearby while watching the children.
Gu Ji and Tian Hong were relieved to see such a scene.
No matter when, reproduction is the most important thing for a tribe. Seeing that the people here have given birth to so many children, it at least shows that they have no worries about food and clothing. Looking at the smiles on people's faces, it is obvious that they are living a good life, otherwise who can be happy?
At the same time, Gu Ji and Tian Hong also noticed the architectural style in the village. When they first went to the city of Xinhua County, they felt that there was no difference in the architectural style of the Han tribe. It was nothing more than the size of the city. However, in Shanghe Village, bamboo houses are everywhere as far as the eye can see. Compared with bamboo houses, the brick and tile houses of the Han tribe are obviously more solid. Why don't the people here live in brick and tile houses but bamboo houses?
Thinking of this, Tian Hong asked directly, "Brother, I came from other places in the Han tribe. All I saw along the way were solid brick and tile houses. Why are there bamboo houses here? Could it be that the Han tribe is unwilling to give them houses? "
Ye An obviously didn't know the ins and outs of this. After all, he was just a guard beside Luo Chong. Even if he knew, they were only about some major tribal events. For small matters like this, sometimes the subordinates would not report it. Luo Chong didn't know, so how could they know? So the one who answered this question was the clerk sent by Tiezhen to lead the way.
Hearing Tian Hong's question, the clerk didn't get angry, but patiently explained.
"Your Excellency, it's like this. This Qiongzhou Island where you are was governed by a tribe called Xin Tribe before the Han Tribe took over. At that time, it was not called Qiongzhou Island, but Bamboo Island, because it was famous for its abundant bamboo.
"At that time, most of the buildings of the people here were bamboo houses. They used local materials, which were inexhaustible and cheap. Later, when our Han Tribe took over, we intended to replace them with brick and tile houses, but most people were used to living in bamboo houses and were unwilling to change to brick and tile houses.
"But later, our leader specially moved a group of immigrants from the mainland, and those immigrants lived in brick and tile houses after they came.
"In addition, with the marriage between immigrants and local people in Qiongzhou in the past two years, more and more young people in the village have chosen to live in brick and tile houses, but some elderly people are unwilling to move to new houses." The clerk explained patiently with a pleasant face.
"So that's the case. I have wrongly blamed the Han tribe."
The group walked and looked, and soon came to the small open space in the middle of the village. This was also the threshing ground in the village a long time ago, but now the threshing ground has long been moved to a cement floor. The original threshing ground has become a place for villagers to gather and chat.
When Guan Tao, the village chief of Shanghe Village, heard that someone was coming from above, he quickly came out to greet him. Now he has married the immigrant Ren family who came here, and married his daughter to Ren Zuo, the eldest son of the Ren family. The two families have become relatives, and they are even more inseparable from the Han tribe.
When the two sides met, Guan Tao took the lead in communicating with the familiar clerk, and then he understood the purpose of everyone's visit. It turned out that the chiefs of other tribes wanted to join the Han tribe, but they were a little hesitant and worried about the situation of their people after joining the Han tribe, so they wanted to see how they lived here.
Guan Tao understood what was going on as soon as he heard it. Instead, he took the initiative to persuade Tian Hong and Gu Ji, and told them the benefits of their village being taken over by the Han tribe one by one, which made Tian Hong and Gu Ji very excited.
In the past, Shanghe Village had nothing in the Xin tribe era. Later, they were able to weave cloth and make clothes by themselves. The loom was also bought from the embassy of the Han tribe. It can be said that they can live such a good life now, all thanks to the support of the Han tribe.
After the Han tribe officially took over the management of Qiongzhou Island, the lives of the people became better.
There were also a few immigrants that the Han tribe brought in specially. They were all talented people, including ironworkers, carpenters, oil mill owners, tofu mill owners, farmers, cart drivers, livestock breeders, and clothing and shoe makers. The native people of Shanghe Village really learned a lot from them.
From the fact that the Han tribe specially arranged immigration for them to help them improve their quality of life, it can be seen that the Han tribe was very attentive to the people.
Of course, this was just what the people thought.
Luo Chong did this for one reason: first, to teach the people of Zhudao more life skills and turn them into a useful population resource. After all, how can they produce without technology? What's the use of a population that can't produce?
Another reason is to assimilate them as quickly as possible and completely change their living habits to be assimilated to the Han tribe. This is Luo Chong's real plan.
(End of this chapter)
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