The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 72 I'll Go Matchmaking
Wu Jialiang was not afraid of Cui Weihua's glare at all. He had been a famous bandit. If he was afraid of the county magistrate's glare, then what was the point of being a famous bandit?

He actually gave a long and serious speech expressing his views: "In my opinion, things like coal mines, iron mines, and salt shouldn't all be controlled by the government. Ordinary merchants should also be allowed to participate. Nothing that is controlled by the government is done well. Where ordinary merchants are involved, not only are prices lower, but the goods are also better."

Yue Wenxuan was secretly delighted: Wow! You, the resourceful Wu Yong, are truly amazing! You've so quickly grasped the advantages of capitalism over feudalism.

When all means of production are in the hands of the monarch, that is the feudal system.

The capitalist system is one in which the means of production are divided up and controlled by businessmen.

The means of production are shared by the people, which means... (ellipsis to prevent closure)

The "decentralization" of means of production will bring competition, and competition will bring better products and more favorable prices. It is also because of the competition for talent that those in power will improve the treatment of workers and find ways to keep workers here and prevent them from running away to other jobs.

Competition is essential! In later generations, countries have been desperately fighting against "monopoly" in order to avoid the situation where the means of production are concentrated in the hands of one person or one company, because this is not a good thing for both producers and consumers.

Feudal monarchy inherently represents centralization, and the only way to break the monarch's monopoly is through revolution.

Of course, this raises another question: why do the cattle and horses feel that capitalists are even more corrupt than feudal monarchs? It's because of overpopulation and a surplus of human resources. Capital doesn't need to compete by offering higher salaries to please talent; instead, it's talent that competes for the favor of capital. This is the so-called "volume..." One hundred million words omitted here.

Wu Jialiang continued, "The government always messes around. All businesses it runs eventually fail. In the past, the government took over all tea production, but that suddenly made it impossible for tea merchants and tea growers to survive. They rebelled, and only some private businesses were restored. The government also implemented horse management, raising horses on government ranches, but they couldn't raise many horses, and those horses were too thin and weak to fight in battles. Later, Wang Anshi implemented the "Horse Protection Law," allowing private horse breeding again... Humph! What can the government do? Forget coal and iron mines. Lately, we can't even get salt in Jimo County. Because the Guanhai Salt Field has surrendered to King Gong, we now have to go through Laiyang to get salt. It's ridiculous! A county by the sea actually has to go elsewhere to get salt. How is this any different from residents in the mountains having to find someone to buy firewood?"

It was such a bunch of nonsense that Cui Weihua had a headache.

I have never seen an official destroy his own position. Who is this Wu County Magistrate?

Wu Jialiang never told his colleagues about his past, so Cui Weihua really didn't know that the county lieutenant in front of him was once a big bandit in Shandong. Of course, he couldn't understand why he often said some "reactionary lines".

Yue Wenxuan laughed inwardly: Wu Yong, you are so bold! You even dare to call Wang Anshi by his name. Other officials would probably respectfully address him as "King Shu" or "Duke Wang Wen."

Then he asked, "Mr. Jialiang, what method do you think we should use to get coal and iron ore?"

Wu Jialiang: "Of course we raise the price. Those miners are not fools. As long as our price is not lower than that of King Gong, they will naturally be willing to sell the coal and iron ore to us."

Cui Weihua: "Isn't this just a normal business? The highest bidder wins."

Wu Jialiang: "We have to use normal business methods to ensure that the people can live a good life. If we continue with the old system, only allowing them to sell to the government, and then lowering the price on one side and raising it on the other, humph! Not only will the miners rebel, but the people of Jimo County will also rebel sooner or later."

Cui Weihua began to think seriously. After a long moment, he sighed and said, "Wu County Magistrate is right. We should do as you say. But I can't do it. I'm new to this county, and the treasury is empty. Without money or grain, how can I possibly raise the price? Besides, even if we raise the price, the miners might not be willing to sell to us... They've already defected, and now they'll definitely vent all their previous resentment towards the government. Given the same price, they'll only sell to Prince Gong."

Yue Wenxuan thought to himself: This is interesting! People on our side are worried that the craftsmen are unwilling to follow the thieves, while the government officials are worried that the miners are unwilling to follow the government again.

Every family has its own problems! After all, everyone has a puddle of mud on their butt.

Yue Wenxuan: "I think this is the best way. I will contact the Chengyang Coal Mine, the Wangzhuang Iron Mine, and even the Guanhai Salt Field. I will buy ore and salt from them in my own name, and then transport it to the county town. As long as I offer a reasonable price, the miners and salt workers will naturally be willing to sell me some goods. I don't think King Gong's people can afford to take all the goods."

Cui Weihua: "It would be great if Master Yue is willing to help. I'm just worried that if King Gong finds out you're helping the government get the goods, he'll hold a grudge against you. If King Gong leads his men to attack the Yue family, I'm afraid I won't be able to rescue them."

Yue Wenxuan: "He won't necessarily hold a grudge against me. In my opinion, Prince Gong will even thank me."

Cui Weihua was surprised: "Why?"

Wu Jialiang immediately realized what was happening and said with a smile, "County Master, you've forgotten one thing. The goods produced by those two mines and the Guanhai Salt Field were originally intended to supply the entire county. Now they're only supplying King Gong. King Gong only controls a few villages with a small population, so how can he afford such a large amount of consumption? They simply can't use up all the ore and salt."

Cui Weihua understood instantly: "That is to say, King Gong is actually having a hard time with all this cargo and wants to exchange it for money and food. He can't just keep spending money collecting ore and then have it pile up unused."

Wu Jialiang: "Exactly! It's inconvenient for our government to trade directly with the thieves, but if we have a middleman, both sides can save face. Not only do we need someone like Master Yue to help, but Prince Gong actually hopes to have someone like this to help him connect with the government and trade some goods."

Now the discussion is settled and there is no more doubt.

Cui Weihua bowed deeply to Yue Wenxuan and said, "I'll have to trouble you with this matter, Master Yue."

Yue Wenxuan: "It's a small matter. I will arrange for the servants to exchange the grain for coal and salt from King Gong and transport it to the county. I also ask the county magistrate to spend more time to organize the craftsmen to produce more weapons and armor, and fill the warehouses. When the Jin thieves come, we must ensure that every young and strong man in the county has weapons and armor to use."

Cui Weihua's spirits lifted. "With Master Yue's financial and food assistance, I will definitely handle this matter well. After all, if the Jin thieves come, I, as the county magistrate, will be the first to lose my head."

Both officials were ready to get to work.

Yue Wenxuan handed the food to them and left the county with the empty convoy.

As they walked further and lost sight of the county town walls, the rebel soldiers in the grain transport team burst into laughter. "Hahahaha, this is so funny! That official thought we were servants from some official family."

"Taking this county town is a piece of cake. We can disguise ourselves as a grain transport team and sneak into the city at any time. It would be easy to capture the city."

"But it's useless to take it now. Don't you see that the people in the county have a bad opinion of us?"

"Alas, this is our fault. Before I followed General Qi Tian to learn military rules and discipline, I was really a bad person. When I think about my past behavior, I feel ashamed to face others."

"Take your time and slowly let the people in the county know that our rebel army is different from before."

(End of this chapter)