Chapter 964: The Poor and Suffering Laborers—Are They Still Important to the Imperial Court?

The Great Ming placed special emphasis on background, which was most obvious in the officialdom. Juren, Ming Jinshi of the third rank, Ming Jinshi of the second rank—the top three ranks all had different career ceilings. Background was the threshold.

And for something like a threshold, there was no other way; it could only be one-size-fits-all.

If you pass the exam, you pass; if you don't, even if you are full of talent, you cannot participate in the operation of power. Even if Lin Lin Fucheng had great ability, he could not participate in the operation of power and could only provide some research results for His Majesty to use as reference.

For the four official factories in the capital, a height of five feet was a rigid threshold. The purpose was to screen people. Regardless of gender, there were too many people wanting to enter the official factories, so this method could only be used to eliminate a portion of them.

In this era when it was difficult to even get enough to eat, a height of five feet actually screened for family background as well. Families of commoners who were displaced and had no land could not raise a child to five feet tall. It could be considered as maximally preventing the wandering and degenerate people from mixing into the official factories.

And the recommendation system increased the cost of making mistakes. If one person makes a mistake, the guarantor will be punished, and it might even implicate their family. When craftsmen do evil things with some playboys, they have to weigh whether the uncle who recommended them will also get into trouble.

"For recommendation, heads of departments, managers, acting managers, and general managers are not allowed to recommend people. If there are truly situations where human feelings are hard to push away, they are allowed to recommend them to other factories in different regions." Feng Bao explained the prerequisite for this recommendation system. Heads of departments and above in official factories were not allowed to recommend people. If they truly couldn't push away human feelings, they were to be placed in factories in different regions.

For example, if Wang Wang Chonggu recommended his nephew, he would be placed in another official factory, and it would be in a different region. This maximally avoided the occurrence of the Wang Wang Jian case.

In an era where traveling far was almost equivalent to life and death, traveling to another place just for the status of a craftsman in an official factory was truly not worth the loss.

"The written examination is strict. If it's within the workshop, it's not strict. If one wants to be an accountant, one needs to be good at bead calculation and refined in calligraphy. The written examination is in the Ministry of Revenue, and the oral examination is in the Ministry of Personnel. It requires officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel to supervise before one can enter the factory." Feng Bao introduced the specific situation of the double-examination system again.

Some departments in the official factories had the status of clerks, such as accountants, personnel, warehouse ambassadors, etc. These clerk exams were not conducted within the official factories but in the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel.

These systems were all to ensure that the official factories did not deviate from the control of the imperial court.

Ling Governor Ling Yunyi and Gao Zhu Qiyu were both very rigorous people. Every step they designed had its own purpose, which was to let the official factories turn from human relationships to systems, allowing the official factories to truly become the financial source of the Great Ming imperial court, continuously providing silver for the Great Ming's reforms.

At the end of the eighteenth year of Emperor Wanli, the Ministry of Revenue completed the annual grand audit. The annual revenue was over 57 million taels of silver, which was 3.2 million taels more than last year. This year's growth was lower than the Ministry of Revenue's expectations. According to the Ministry of Revenue's expectations, this year's revenue should have exceeded 60 million taels.

"This year's land tax was 10.3 million taels of silver, a decrease of 3.28 million taels compared to last year's 13.58 million taels. This year, water and drought were not adjusted, so the imperial court exempted land taxes in various disaster-stricken areas: 70% exemption in Suiyuan, Shanxi, Shaanxi; 30% in Northern Zhili and Henan; 20% in Shandong; and 10% in other regions."

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Since having those "prison-entry" talents in the Dongjiaominxiang prison, the Ministry of Revenue could finally finish the grand audit at the end of each year and report to His Majesty.

"Grand Minister of Revenue, I remember that the land tax in the fifteenth year of Emperor Wanli was 15 million taels?" Zhu Zhu Yijun sat up straight and asked.

"Returning to Your Majesty, the fifteenth year of Emperor Wanli was 15.42 million taels, and the commercial tax was 36.58 million taels, totaling 52 million taels. It was also the first time commercial tax exceeded 70% of the annual revenue. The highest land tax was 16.53 million taels in the twelfth year of Emperor Wanli, and it has decreased year by year since then. This year is the year with the most land tax exemptions." Zhang Zhang Xueyan, as the empire's accountant, knew the empire's fiscal and tax situation like the back of his hand.

In three years, land tax had dropped by 5 million taels, which was almost equivalent to the annual revenue of the Emperor Jiajing period. The Emperor's mausoleum was no longer suitable as a unit of measurement; instead, the annual revenue of the Emperor Jiajing period was used as the unit.

This represented the booming trend of commercial tax.

That is to say, for the operation of the commandery-county system, this land tax still had to be collected. But in fact, since the fifteenth year of Emperor Wanli, the imperial court's fiscal revenue no longer relied on land tax.

But land tax must be collected. If you don't collect it, it's not the Great Ming's territory. If you collect land tax, you have to be responsible for the people, you have to clarify land ownership, and you have to settle those unclear lawsuits.

The Luzon Viceroyalty also collected land tax, and even converted it into red copper every year to be transported to the capital, representing the Great Ming's rule in Luzon.

Land tax also involved all aspects such as land and population, requiring caution upon caution.

The main purpose of the imperial court's large-scale land tax exemption this time was to exchange for the local gentry and scholars fulfilling the promises they made before the celestial changes—that is, the sixty-four various promises such as reducing rent in disaster years and not engaging in land annexation.

The imperial court had truly collected less land tax, and the Southern Yamen of each county had posted notices of this year's tax reduction. The imperial court said that there were water and drought celestial changes and reduced tax burdens. The powerful and influential, the local gentry and scholars, had nothing to say and could only fulfill their promises, following suit.

Heavenly Father was willing to make concessions downward, and His Majesty kept his word—saying he would reduce it, he reduced it—and shared the difficult times with the people. The local small masters naturally followed suit.

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at the account book in front of him. This account book was not just "good"; it was "great."

He said with worry, "When the Duke of Wen Cheng was here, he was most worried that the more technological progress there was, the further the imperial court would be from the people. Regarding mechanical workshops, he was cautious upon cautious, saying that if he didn't have to set them up, he wouldn't. The Duke of Wen Cheng said he was afraid that once the machine turned, three hundred weavers would have nothing to do."

"In the past, the people could still arm themselves to resist taxes to express their dissatisfaction, just like the civil unrest of Ye Ye Zongliu and Deng Deng Maoqi in Fujian in the thirteenth year of During Zhengtong, or the land soldier rebellion in three counties including Ruijin and Ninghua in the fifteenth year of Emperor Wanli."

"Now it's better; the imperial court cares less and less about land tax."

The Emperor's words caused the joyous atmosphere in the Zhao Wenhua Hall to pause. Everyone was exchanging glances, and occasionally there was whispering.

Wang Wang Chonggu was by no means worrying about nothing, because before he passed away last year, Wang Wang Chonggu had already noticed the problem and had specifically submitted three memorials.

Zhu Zhu Yijun continued: "It seems that since the tenth year of Emperor Wanli, no one has mentioned land surveys again. Even the return of land in Zhejiang—that is, when I went to Zhejiang and saw the results of the land return—I issued 'Turning Over a New Leaf' and let the officials talk about their views through the congratulatory memorials for the Longevity Festival."

"But it seems very few people in the court mention land surveying and returning anymore."

After Wang Wang Chonggu returned to the capital from his southern tour last year, he discovered that the Southern Yamen at all levels were paying less and less attention to land tax.

The local Southern Yamen in Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangzuo, Jiang You, and Huguang had set up a purchasing Southern Yamen in Shanghai and Songjiang Prefecture, specifically to buy foreign grain from overseas. They didn't even unload the ships; when the sea transport set sail, they would escort it to the capital together.

Local Southern Yamen paid more attention to post roads and water transport dredging, and paid less and less attention to land tax. When the imperial court didn't care about land tax, it naturally didn't care about the people anymore.

Power would not appear in any vacuum. Village bullies, rascals, and hooligans were replacing the imperial court's ruling status in the countryside.

If this continues, are the poor and suffering laborers still important to the imperial court?

Wang Wang Chonggu's worry can be summarized in one sentence: the imperial court's ruling foundation is shifting from population and land to commercial capital.

This transformation of the commodity economy makes towns more and more important and the countryside less and less important. The Great Ming imperial court seems to no longer need to reach into the countryside to maintain effective and stable rule.

If the method of vertical cutting used by the West is used again, and some methods of mutual harm among the poor and suffering laborers are designed, the rule will be even more stable.

The importance of the poor and suffering laborers to maintaining the current operation of the imperial court (especially finance) has significantly decreased, becoming less and less important, and even becoming a burden at certain times. The imperial court has the motivation and the ability to, to a considerable extent, ignore the specific plight of the poor and suffering laborers.

In the countryside, bullies, hooligans, and rascals have become the greatest scourge, yet no one restrains them;

In towns, the poor and suffering laborers degenerate into wandering and degenerate people, which instead facilitates overseas expansion, taking risks, worshiping Mazu, and leaving the Great Ming's hinterland and territory;

In terms of law, it focuses more on maintaining tax sources, that is, commercial capital, rather than land and population;

Imperial power does not go below the county; below the county, there are only clans; clans are self-governing; self-governance relies on ethics;

Ethics create the gentry.

The wild and strong vitality of the local gentry and scholars is like wild grass.

The savage and vigorous vitality of the local gentry is just like wild grass.

The theory of silver alone is very suitable for bearing all the blame.

Zhu Zhu Yijun waved his hand and said, "I am just feeling emotional. The teacher's Single Whip Law was not widely implemented; it was only tried in Songjiang Prefecture. Pushing all these faults onto the Single Whip Law is a bit like the Great Sage Equaling Heaven drawing in the Book of Life and Death, wiping out everyone's faults at once."

Zhu Zhu Yijun waved his hand and said: "I am just feeling a bit emotional. The Teacher's Single Whip Law has not been widely implemented; it was only piloted in Songjiang Prefecture. Shifting these crimes onto the Single Whip Law is a bit like the Great Sage Equaling Heaven crossing out names in the Book of Life and Death—wiping away everyone's faults in one stroke."

A regime, an imperial court—everyone allows you to impose harsh taxes, allows you not to be considerate of the people's suffering, and even allows you to be cruel and unjust, but they do not allow you to lose.

As long as you are still winning, these sufferings can be barely accepted, because the things you seize in foreign wars eventually have to be distributed, even if it's just drinking a mouthful of soup—such as the land in Liaodong, the lambs in Suiyuan, the palm gardens in Luzon, the cinchona gardens in the Old Port, and the gold in Jinchuan.

"When the Duke of Wen Cheng was here, he wrote two memorials for me to choose from. It looked like there was a choice, but in fact, there was no choice at all. If I don't win against the West, become the hegemon of the world, and seize the crown of the empire on which the sun never sets, the Emperor Wanli Reform can only be called a failure." Zhu Zhu Yijun spoke of Gao Zhu Qiyu's two memorials.

One is to fight, one is not to fight.

It looks like not fighting can lead to lying down and winning. Anyway, the Great Ming has cost advantages and commodity advantages. The Westerners cannot leave the Great Ming's goods. Let the Westerners plunder the four seas, and then the Great Ming people can plunder the Westerners with goods.

But the big cake drawn by the Emperor Wanli Reform cannot be realized. The profits are all earned by the Westerners, these middlemen.

Zhu Zhu Yijun promised that the glory of the Emperor Wanli Reform includes everyone in the Great Ming, including the poor and suffering laborers.

Therefore, it is very obvious that there is only one path: take the crown of the empire on which the sun never sets, become the hegemon of the world, occupy areas suitable for living, distribute these gains downward, and fulfill all promises.

Zhu Zhu Yijun's situation is the same as Wu Di of Han. Wu Di of Han had to win against the Xiongnu. As long as he won against the Xiongnu, everything was easy to talk about. And Zhu Zhu Yijun has to win against the West. As long as he is continuously expanding new colonies and viceroyalties, he can give the people an explanation.

In fact, the reason why the Westerners cannot defeat the Great Ming now is not complicated, because the Great Ming has always treated the West as a whole in its response, putting in great effort to sow discord, fearing that the Westerners won't fight fiercely enough, desperately fanning the flames and adding oil to the fire.

And the West is a plate of loose sand, each with its own conflicts of interest, unable to form a combined force. Only then could the Great Ming achieve these results despite lagging behind in maritime expansion.

Zhu Zhu Yijun sat up straight and said with a solemn expression, "Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. The ancient teachings are clear. Although commercial profits are abundant, one must never forget the foundation of farming. Although the markets are prosperous, one must never abandon the millions of people as straw dogs."

"Specifically, the Dinghai School System, post roads, the camp farm law, reducing land tax, and the equity system must be done and must be done well. They must be continuously promoted and cannot be relaxed. These are all long-term policies that benefit the people."

He said: "Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. The ancient teachings are clear. Although commercial profits are abundant, one must never forget the foundation of agriculture. Although the markets are prosperous, one must never abandon the millions of people as straw dogs."

The Emperor gave clear instructions: on the road of the Emperor Wanli Reform, do not forget the foundation of farming and the millions of people. This is the purpose of the Emperor Wanli Reform's departure.

"Your Majesty, should the Agricultural Academy expand enrollment to 1,500 people next year?" Gao Zhu Qiyu did not return to his class but stood out and made a suggestion.

In the countryside, what is needed most are agricultural officials to teach the people how to farm and help them farm well. Agricultural officials and medical officials are the two most important levers to effectively ensure the safety of the people's lives and property.

Gao Zhu Qiyu had read "Hygiene and Simple Prescriptions." Just one "Women's Regulations" could save countless rural women and children, not to mention the distributed wormwood pills, which were life-saving medicines in the countryside.

The more Gao Zhu Qiyu thought about it, the more shocked he became. When His Majesty set up the Baoqi Department back then, was it really not doing his proper job, just for fun?

Looking at the promotion of the Wu Zhongcheng sweet potato today, Gao Zhu Qiyu could only say that in His Majesty's heart, the people were always the most important.

Food is the people's heaven; nothing is more important than having enough to eat.

"I don't have much silver left. Let's see about the expansion." Zhu Zhu Yijun really wanted to agree, but the inner treasury had no silver.

This is a very helpless fact. The inner treasury actually has money. If one doesn't store gold, doesn't talk about gold banknotes, or uses gold for other purposes, one could actually squeeze out a lot of silver.

Who dares to audit the Emperor's Tonghe Palace treasury to see how much gold there is? The Grand Secretary, the Grand General, or the Ministry of Revenue's Grand Minister? None of these ministers can audit how much gold is in the Tonghe Palace. Isn't it just however much gold the Emperor says there is?

But His Majesty keeps his promise; the gold banknotes really have gold.

His Majesty wants to do too many things, which makes the inner treasury somewhat stretched and unable to make ends meet.

Actually, what Gao Zhu Qiyu said, the silver needed is really not much. Expanding to 1,500 people, 120 silver per person, plus 6 silver for supplies each year, four years is only 210,000 silver. Other expenses added together are only 300,000 silver.

But the Imperial Academy also needs to expand, the eighteen universities, the Beijing-Guangzhou post road, the Jinan to Yangzhou post road—all need silver. Added together, the burden is heavy, and the pressure is great.

Actually, what Gao Zhu Qiyu said is that the silver needed is really not much. Expanding recruitment to 1,500 people, at 120 silver per person, plus 6 silver for annual lamp oil money, would only be 210,000 silver over four years. Adding all other expenses together, it would only be 300,000 silver.

However, the Imperial Academy in the capital also needs to expand, as do the eighteen universities, the Beijing-Guangzhou highway, and the Jinan to Nanya Yangzhou highway. All need silver. Adding them up item by item, the burden is heavy, and the pressure is great.

Three people make a tiger; the jadeite from the imperial farm sold extremely well and was in short supply.

"Your Majesty, the Anti-Corruption Department has confiscated a lot of silver from handling cases. Many a little makes a mickle; it is enough for expansion." Lu Lu Shusheng, upon hearing that His Majesty was short of silver, immediately stepped out to report to His Majesty: there is money, he, Lu Lu Shusheng, knows where there is money!

The Anti-Corruption Department had confiscated so many corrupt officials; the proceeds from the house searches alone were enough for expansion!

The Anti-Corruption Department handled the Beijing-Guangzhou post road corruption case and the capital anti-corruption case, totaling over 1.5 million silver. This silver was enough for a period of time!

If it was still not enough, the Anti-Corruption Department could tighten the net.

Ling Governor Ling Yunyi looked at Lu Lu Shusheng in surprise. This Cabinet minister had previously shown a great liking for compromise and offending no one. Ling Governor Ling Yunyi had thought Lu Lu Shusheng belonged to the type who played dumb, but could such a thing as anti-corruption being for the sake of creating revenue be spoken of so openly?

Lu Lu Shusheng actually didn't want to be vague, but he had just entered the Cabinet for anti-corruption matters and his footing was unstable. If he expressed his stance recklessly, he would only become a victim of the struggle.

First do the anti-corruption job well, and after having a foundation to stand on, then talk about other things. Just like before, he had to borrow the momentum of Grand General Qi Qi Jiguang to complete the "three fires" of the Anti-Corruption Department's new official appointment.

"Now that you mention it, there is indeed silver. Then expand enrollment next year." Zhu Zhu Yijun, upon hearing this, his eyes lit up, and he nodded immediately. If there was money, he naturally wouldn't be stingy. He wouldn't save a single cent of money that should be spent.

"We respectfully follow the decree." Gao Zhu Qiyu and Lu Lu Shusheng bowed and said.

Ministers never worried about the Emperor taking silver and spending it recklessly. To this day, except for necessary palace expenses, most of the silver in the inner treasury was put into the Dinghai School System, post roads, and gold banknotes—all for state affairs.

If it were a matter of favor, the imperial court owed His Majesty a favor, and it was a favor of real gold and silver that could never be repaid.

"This year, fifty-one official factories have all started construction smoothly, and it is expected to be completed within four years." Minister of Works Zeng Tongheng reported on the northern official factories prepared by the Ministry of Works. There were 110 official factories in total, and the first batch of fifty-one were mostly coal, coke, and steel factories, mainly to supply coal for production and daily life.

Every city in the Great Ming raised a large group of woodcutters, wood carriers, and wood distributors. Just like water-hole masters and manure-path masters, woodcutters also had their own wood gangs, and their momentum was vast. Even if coal was not used for winter in the south, firewood, rice, oil, and salt—firewood comes first—also required firewood to light fires for cooking.

The woodcutters of the wood gangs cut from one mountain to another. Cutting to this day, every mountain in the Great Ming is bare.

Many people are saying that the celestial changes happening in the Great Ming now are heaven's punishment. People unscrupulously destroyed the natural environment and finally met with retribution.

But people have to live after all. Before coal mining technology is reliable and transportation is convenient, and before coal can be stably supplied, if people don't cut trees, are they supposed to starve to death? Destroying the environment is certainly not good, but people must first survive.

Now, with the appearance of more and more coal, coke, and steel factories, this problem finally has an answer. Coal at six wen per jin is also a great holy grace.

"Your Majesty, this year, the grain transport ships have a new type of ship." Zeng Tongheng signaled the ritual officer to present the model he had handed over before entering the hall to the imperial front.

After the young eunuch checked it, it was presented to the imperial front. The ship was divided into two sections: the front was a tugboat, and the rear was a barge. The barge had no power. The barge was six zhang and five chi long, six chi and four cun deep, with a draft of three chi and six cun. It could load one thousand "liao" (one liao is 120 jin, which is the weight of one Taiyue grain transport box).

Zeng Tongheng looked at the model in His Majesty's hand and said, "The tugboat is about the same size as the barge. Copper-wrapped wood is used to increase its lifespan. It has one Princess Shengping No. 9 ship engine, with a central horsepower of 440. It can tow four to eight barges and travel 360 li of water per day."

One tugboat, towing eight barges, can carry 8,000 shi of grain. Four million shi of grain transport grain only requires five hundred such grain transport ships. The five major shipyards working overtime can complete them in about six months.

That is to say, changing from sea transport to river transport, the grain transport that used to occupy the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal for four months can now be completed in just one month.

"How many trackers can one such ship replace?" Zhu Zhu Yijun flipped through the model in his hand and asked about the details.

Zeng Tongheng, upon hearing His Majesty's inquiry, took a deep breath, bowed his head, and said, "1,200 trackers."

"So, the Grand Minister of Works means to establish a Southern Yamen similar to the Post Road Extraction Bureau in the Ministry of Revenue—the Navigation Department—with a Transfer Commissioner to supervise the river affairs, and then give silver to the shipyards to customize such tugboats and barges for the special purpose of transfer."

"With only five hundred, it can snatch away the livelihood of 600,000 trackers." Zhu Zhu Yijun liked the tugboat and barge model in his hand very much, but his words made the court officials in the Zhao Wenhua Hall somewhat silent.

Zhu Zhu Yijun liked the tugboat model very much and could be described as unable to put it down.

The structure of the tugboat is simple: just one Princess Shengping No. 9 steam engine, plus an underwater propeller, and nothing else. The rest is space for coal. Moreover, coal can be replenished along the way at any time, and the ship workers can cook, boil water, and live on the ship relying on the heat of the furnace.

A tugboat towing four barges or eight barges is very flexible. Towing one is not suitable; it wastes coal.

This is an inland river ship designed and manufactured by the Longjiang Shipyard. The transformation of ship technology is a very long and complex process, especially involving ships with steam engine power, which is even more complex.

In the past, Great Ming ships all used trackers. Now, they are finally starting to use steam machinery.

But the problem is, the appearance of five hundred iron horse tugboats will leave 600,000 trackers with nothing to do.

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Zeng Tongheng and said, "Princess Shengping No. 1 only had three horsepower, and each horsepower cost four hundred silver. At that time, everyone didn't think there was any need to study iron horses. Today, thirteen years later, Princess Shengping No. 9 has 440 central horsepower, and each horsepower only costs 20 silver. If manufactured in large quantities, each horsepower only costs 15 silver, or even lower."

"One Princess Shengping No. 9 only costs 8,800 silver. Including depreciation, repairs, coal consumption, etc., the tugboat costs no more than 10,000 silver a year, which can replace 1,200 trackers. A tracker needs to be paid at least 15 silver a year. This is heavy physical labor, which is 18,000 silver."

Barges have existed since ancient times. Since the Grand Canal, these thin-skinned barges crawling on the water have existed. Inland rivers are much calmer and safer than the sea, and the cost of barges is the same.

In terms of traction power, the Princess Shengping No. 9 tugboat is much, much more cost-effective than 1,200 trackers.

"Your Majesty, the Great Ming is short of people everywhere. Overseas viceroyalties and plantations are short of people, Liaodong land reclamation is short of people, Suiyuan Wang Hua is short of people, and even Western Regions expansion is short of people. Workshops are short of people, and fields are also short of people." Zeng Tongheng took a deep breath and said, "600,000 laborers can effectively alleviate the harm of being short of people."

"Grand Minister of Works, that is the livelihood of the people, not as simple as a number." Zhu Zhu Yijun reluctantly put down the tugboat model, took a deep breath, and said, "Take it slow. Don't build five hundred at once. Build them one by one, come bit by bit, and improve the technology along the way."

"Your Majesty, the Longjiang Shipyard also needs to operate. Otherwise, if the shipwrights build good ships but cannot produce them, then the shipyard won't build new ships in the future, and no one will want to build new ships, after all, they aren't allowed to." Zeng Tongheng carefully deliberated and deliberated before stating the difficulties of the Longjiang Shipyard.

The Longjiang Shipyard and the Qingjiang Shipyard are the two inland river shipyards among the five major shipyards. These tugboats and barges are the main focus of the two shipyards for the next five to ten years. If they don't build these ships with high added value and high profits, where will the shipwrights get their dividends?

"Trackers are difficult, and shipyards are also difficult. Both are difficult. The livelihood of a million grain transport workers is tied to it. I am not a woman of benevolence, build them." Zhu Zhu Yijun tapped his hand on the table and said, "Just follow the Ministry of Works' statement and set up a Navigation Department to specifically handle river transport and river grain transport."

Considering the livelihood of 600,000 trackers is by no means a woman's benevolence, but when it is time to make a decision, Zhu Zhu Yijun will not hesitate. This is already the third time the Longjiang Shipyard has submitted a similar tugboat memorial. If they drag it out any longer, the Longjiang and Qingjiang shipyards will be very difficult to maintain.

The Ministry of Works wants to set up a jointly managed Navigation Department in the Ministry of Revenue. In fact, it is not necessarily to snatch the work of 600,000 trackers. Whether it is the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal or the Yangtze River grain transport, now it is "goods waiting for people."

There are ships, but there are not enough trackers. Goods can only wait for trackers, and many times, ship jams are caused by a shortage of trackers.

The tugboats built by the Longjiang and Qingjiang shipyards are mainly to fill the gap in transport capacity, increase the flow of goods, and let goods move, rather than being blocked in inland river ports.

Filling the gap in transport capacity will definitely have a huge impact on the livelihood of trackers, but the tide of the times is always so ruthless, and the Emperor Wanli Reform is not playing house. When it is time to make a decision, one must make a good decision.

Zhu Zhu Yijun communicated in detail with Zeng Tongheng about the production of tugboats and finally approved the Ministry of Works' memorial.

When it is time to make a decision, one must be decisive. ===== CHAPTER 965 =====

Considering the livelihood of 600,000 trackers is by no means womanly kindness, but when it is time to make a decision, Zhu Zhu Yijun will not hesitate. This is already the third time the Longjiang Shipyard has presented similar tugboats. If it drags on any longer, the Longjiang and Qingjiang shipyards will find it difficult to sustain themselves.

The Ministry of Works wants to set up a co-managed Shipping Department under the Ministry of Revenue. In fact, it is not that they must snatch the work of the 600,000 trackers. Whether it is the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal or the Yangtze River grain transport, goods are now waiting for people.

There are ships, but not enough trackers. Goods can only wait for trackers. Traffic jams are often caused by

the lack of trackers.

The tugboats built by the Longjiang and Qingjiang shipyards are mainly to fill the gap in transport capacity, increase the turnover of goods, and get goods moving instead of being blocked in inland river ports.

Filling the gap in transport capacity will certainly have a huge impact on the livelihood of trackers, but the tide of the times is always so ruthless. The Emperor Wanli Reform is not child's play. When it is time to make a decision, one must be prepared to make it.

Zhu Zhu Yijun communicated in detail with Zeng Tongheng about the tugboat production situation and finally approved the Ministry of Works' memorial.

When it is time to make a decision, one must be decisive.