Chapter 327: Meeting (III)

"I'll start with a question about population."

"In the years to come, there is one theme that will run through the latter half of everyone's life here, and that is colonization."

Standing on the platform, Xia Xianze's eyes were bright and piercing as he swept his gaze left and right over the crowd below — everyone seemed to be listening attentively; any fool daring not to give the Grand Secretary face had yet to be spotted.

"The North American Plains, the South American Rainforest, the Australian Pasture, the Alaska Salmon, the South African Gold Mine... these vast lands and riches all require us to guide the Empire's subjects to conquer and occupy."

"Under these circumstances, population becomes the single most important colonization resource, bar none. Why is that? Because we are pressed for time, so we can only use high attrition in exchange for the results we've planned for."

"Look at the casinos on the North American Indian Reservations, look at the protest marches of the Taiwanese Aborigines, and the already extinct Passenger Pigeon and Chinese Rhinoceros... from society and politics to the natural environment, over the centuries-long process of colonization, those in control made far too many mistakes, and these are precisely what we must avoid."

"So we cannot leave the problems to later generations... someone who is not a Transmigrator cannot realize which problems will eventually become social tumors. Yes, our generation must draw the national borders and sweep this brand-new country clean, so as to leave it for the future citizens."

At this point, Xia Xianze's expression darkened: "This is our destiny, and it is also the blessing by which our descendants shall enjoy the realm."

After pausing a moment, sensing that the crowd below had grasped his meaning, Xia Xianze then continued: "In this situation, population becomes the most precious resource... if we want to cover in thirty or forty years the path others took centuries to walk, expending population is the only way."

"Then where does the population come from? There is only one answer: the Great Ming."

"Later generations have some arguing that the Late Ming population was tens of millions, others say one hundred million, two hundred million, three hundred million — in my view, this is all nonsense, because no data can tally how many people were hidden away by the landlord class. Even now, in the Ming villages we've come into contact with, the population figures there are extremely uneven."

"For now, let's calculate based on an average of one hundred million people."

At this point, Xia Xianze turned around, picked up a document from the table, and then lowered his head: "The disasters of the Little Ice Age, the invasions of the Northern Barbarians, the high government taxes caused by the above, and additionally, the competitive die-off after the population exceeded the land's carrying capacity. These several factors caused the Late Ming population to decrease by an average of about 2 million people every year."

"This trend has already begun, starting with those Hangzhou Refugees we encountered when we first crossed over."

At this, Xia Xianze raised his head: "So two years have passed, and as of today, how many subjects does the Empire have? 400,000. That is to say, despite our desperate efforts, of the 4 million people who should have died in these two years, only one-tenth had their fate changed."

"Calculating this way makes it very clear: if the refugees we gather each year from now on fall below 2 million people, that's equivalent to a loss. A loss where? A loss in the vast New World!"

Using his finger to trace a circle on the world map on the side wall, Xia Xianze said loudly: "Even if we scrape together one hundred million people from the Ming Country in the future to stuff into the New World, it will still be far from enough! What's more, our current intake capacity is still at a weakling level, needing development, development, and more development!"

"So we are now in a race, a race against the Manchu Qing's butchering blade and the Little Ice Age's disasters. In the Ming Country, countless people are dying every moment, and originally all these people would have become cannon fodder for opening up the New World. Even if they had to die, they should die in malaria and in the battles to clear out the Natives!"

"Honorable ministers, people are not chives; you can't cut a crop and have it grow right back. For a child to grow to a 'useful' age takes at least 18 years."

At this, Xia Xianze's previously impassioned tone softened: "The Late Ming population seems to have exploded, but that was accumulated over the previous centuries. If we miss this crop, and think about transporting people in large numbers ten years from now, I'm sorry, but by then tens of millions will have already died, and the population won't be so easy to gather."

"... After all this, the core idea I want to express is this: for at least the next ten years, all development plans of our nascent nation should be formulated around this core issue of population."

At this moment, Xia Xianze finally threw out his proposition: "Aimless, chaotic development won't do; there must be priorities. For instance, the Battleship proposed by the Navy can certainly wait a while, freeing up resources to build river gunboats — that way we can sail upstream into the Ming interior to bring in population."

"With people, you have everything; without people, can giant ships and big cannons kill the Natives in the Madagascar Rainforest?"

"As for running off to the Yangtze Delta to open cotton mills, that's an even more brainless idea!" At this, Xia Xianze rapped his knuckles on the table, his expression turning stern: "Never mind what kind of backlash we'd incur by touching the cheese of the Songjiang Gentry, but the act of building factories itself — this sort of action capitalism uses to drastically change society — does it align with our current interests?"

"We already have large numbers of people on the brink of starvation because our intake capacity is insufficient. And now, on top of that, you want to run off and open cotton mills, paper mills, clothing factories, completely shattering the ancient social system that was barely holding on, causing large numbers of weavers and rural handicraft workers to go bankrupt and wait for death..."

"Without the capacity to take over the aftermath, you run off to the Ming Country to play some damn industrial tycoon — is this because you think the Ming People aren't dying fast enough? Double the number every year, is 4 million enough?"

At this, Xia Xianze angrily pounded his fist on the table: "This is statecraft, not playing around! What damn porcelain kilns, have you been reading too many solo-transmigrator novels?"

"Policies are never inherently good or bad, only suitable or unsuitable."

Xia Xianze finally summarized: "In the next ten years... perhaps eight, in short, before the Ming court completely collapses, our policy should be to help the Ming Country maintain the current mess."

"We should not touch any of the Ming Country's traditional industries, such as weaving and papermaking. On the contrary, the Empire will issue orders to these industries, so as to stimulate the Ming economy and enable workshop owners to have the money to hire a couple more people."

"As for going to the Ming Country to engage in industry, please, use your increasingly atrophied brains to pick a suitable trade!"

Xia Xianze shot an exasperated glance at a certain clique in the crowd: "A matchbox-sticking factory that can settle refugees — one that won't provoke backlash from vested interests, yet allows these people to barely hang on until the day we have the capability to ship them away — isn't that far better than a cotton mill?"

"In short, some primary processing enterprises that do not touch the existing system and are labor-intensive are the focus of our future arrangements in the Ming Country."

"Gentlemen, across the strait is a society in slow collapse. How to help this society HOLD the situation together, before our own appetite is large enough, so that more people can survive — this is a task that greatly tests our craftsmanship, and it concerns the Empire's great colonization enterprise!"

At the very end, Xia Xianze said with earnest gravity: "Since you sit in these seats, I ask you, honored sirs, to bring to bear the vision and boldness of those in power, and to consider issues with the nation's interests paramount... I'll remind you once more, you are all ironclad stalwarts of the party whose fate rests with the state. The richer and stronger the nation, the fewer internal constraints, the more years your descendants can sustain this system... everyone, take care of yourselves."

The effect of Xia Xianze's speech was quickly reflected in the parliamentary voting that very afternoon — after all, he was both the head of government and the party leader; barring major ideological conflicts, the entire Conservative Party and a portion of the soy-sauce crowd were certain to support him.

And so a group of Light Industrialists were the first to suffer misfortune.

This group's proposals were basically met with total annihilation, with collateral damage attached: as for the light industrial goods already existing in the Kiln District, aside from those for personal use, any others that conflicted with Ming Country Local Products would henceforth only be allowed for export to Europeans and Japan, and forbidden from being sold to the opposite shore.

Next to take a stray hit was the military.

Riding the wave of "suppressing the short-sighted," the military was muddle-headedly tossed a pot to carry by the various major departments in unison: "the military must endure."

Consequently, the Navy's Battleship Plan was compressed into a "Verification Ship" Plan, and the Army's 3 newly organized battalions were cut down to 1...

They wanted to cry but had no tears.

Later that evening, the voting results for all proposals came out of the furnace. As expected, the Agricultural System, led by Liang Le, once again received the largest proportion of Import Goods for the year 1629: 30%.

All other departments shared the remaining 70%.

With the big figures set, the detailed rules that followed would be under the Cabinet's control.

In the coming year, each department would successively submit detailed plans based on their assigned Quotas, and after receiving the plans, the Cabinet would, according to the resource allocation ratios set at this General Assembly, coordinate and make overall plans, then issue a goods list to the Emperor, letting the Old Man "transport" over the needed resources.

And so, an important meeting that decided whether everyone would eat meat or drink soup next year thus concluded.

And the Great Golden Dragon Empire, this power confined to a corner, once again used the opportunity of convening parliament to integrate internal resources, unify thinking, adjust the nation's future strategic direction, and Be Ready To respond to surrounding powers.

Never mind the Transmigrators over here, coiled like a crouching horse with drawn bow; what we don't know now is, have the surrounding powers Be Ready To respond?

"Grand Steward, Song Asheng has returned!"

"Oh, so soon? Call him in."

In a moment, a dark, thin man who looked very aged, dressed as a fisherman, his face covered with water-worn lines, came panting heavily into the room.

"Greetings, Great Boss."

"Enough, enough, sit down and talk."

Liu Xiang waved his hand and called for someone to pour Song Asheng a cup of fine Shuixian Tea.