People in the Republic of China era began to rise from industry.

They don't talk about national righteousness, they only talk about sharing benefits.

The next morning, after being invited to have coffee with He Jingzhi's secretary, Lin Yi knew that he no longer needed to do anything about it.

If even He Jingzhi, the number two figure in the Military Commission, can't push this matter forward, then all my efforts will be in vain.

As for seeking reconciliation with Kong Yongzhi and Song Wenchang and using their channels to facilitate the matter, Lin Yi had not considered it.

People who are used to hoarding everything will not be satisfied with just sharing some of the profits from the arsenal.

As for paying a higher price, that's completely meaningless.

If they get a share, wouldn't it be even better to just lose money?

If an agreement is destined to fail, there's no need to waste time negotiating...

A textile industry seminar was officially held.

On that very day, newspapers that had previously been filled with articles discussing the damage high tariffs would cause to industries suddenly began to feature a series of articles expressing sympathy for farmers.

Although the content of the articles differs, their arguments are all consistent.

Moreover, this is exactly the opposite of the argument that high tariffs harm industries.

On the protection of Chinese agriculture by high tariffs.

Almost every article is well-reasoned and supported by evidence, and in addition to discussing grain, it also highlights the cotton industry.

They asserted with absolute certainty that lowering import tariffs on cotton would inevitably bring catastrophic consequences to a large number of cotton farmers.

That makes a lot of sense and gets right to the heart of the matter.

Lin Yi, who had been sitting in the car reading through several articles, at least agreed with these arguments.

Tariffs are meant to protect domestic industries, in addition to increasing government revenue.

Otherwise, why would the great powers have resorted to force to open China's doors?

Are they using the advantage of low or even zero tariffs to dump their goods?

But this issue cannot be settled so simply.

The value of raw materials and industrial products differs greatly.

Even for textile products with very low added value, the profit margin is still much higher than that of selling raw materials directly.

Not to mention, the extra steps and processes in between generate real value.

For a country like China with a weak industrial base...

Once the expansion of light industry stagnates, how can we drive the development of heavy industry?

Without a large number of industrial workers forming a larger consumer market, how can we provide impetus for the development of a wider range of light industries?

Without the development of both light and heavy industries, there is no way to talk about industrialization.

Without industrialization, we can only rely on agriculture to provide tax revenue.

However, agricultural tax revenue under the premise of unchanged arable land... this should be an issue that Nanjing needs to consider.

The most appropriate approach would be for Nanjing to provide subsidies to cotton farmers who have suffered losses due to the reduction in import tariffs on cotton.

However, Lin Yi knew that this was probably unreliable.

Not to mention there's no precedent.

Even if there were a policy in place, the relief funds would likely be completely distributed and by the time they reached the cotton farmers, they would probably have nothing left.

Even if only a single hair remains, it will probably end up in the hands of the landlord.

Even He Jingzhi readily accepted the two-point kickback, so Lin Yi had given up on any illusions at this stage.

"Master, we're here."

The car stopped, and Ah Sheng noticed that Lin Yi was still staring at the newspaper in his hand, so he spoke up to remind him.

"it is good."

Lin Yi put the newspaper aside and got out of the car.

The French General Hotel, where the seminar was held, is considered a regular meeting place for the Federation.

The founding ceremony was held here.

Tie Lin, who is now the deputy chief detective of the French Concession police station, is still here today.

Seeing Lin Yi get out of the car, he nodded in greeting from a distance.

At this moment, Wu Rongsheng and Zhang Jingde, who were waiting in front of the steps, along with more than ten directors, came up to greet them.

A group of people escorted Lin Yi up the steps in front of the door. Wu Rongsheng lowered his voice and said, "Mr. Lin, have you read today's newspaper?"

"I've seen it; the angle you chose is excellent."

Lin Yi nodded and offered a word of praise.

When it comes to the interests of farmers, mainstream public opinion will never support a bunch of capitalists.

If this kind of public opinion is allowed to fester, the ancestors of that group of people will be cursed for eighteen generations.

Wu Rongsheng and his group were also aware of this.

Hearing Chairman Lin praising his opponent, the group of people couldn't help but exchange bewildered glances.

Even their steps became hesitant.

Lin Yi stopped and looked around, then smiled and said, "Gentlemen, this is simply a fact, and there's nothing we can do to argue with them about it."

"The more we argue, the more people will criticize us."

"President, what should we do?"

Zhang Jingde's brows were furrowed.

Just before Lin Yi arrived, a group of people were discussing how to deal with this matter.

He and Wu Rongsheng had considered the possibility of setbacks in this seminar.

Previously, it was thought that the Nationalist government would use the excuse of financial difficulties and that lowering tariffs would only make matters worse.

They weren't too worried about that.

The tax revenue generated from the expansion of the textile industry is sufficient to offset this shortfall.

Even articles like this had already been fabricated many times in advance.

They were just waiting to release this information after formal negotiations with the Nationalist government to set the record straight.

Unexpectedly, the opponent launched an offensive against the association from the perspective of cotton farmers.

Before the tariffs on imported cotton were raised, nobody brought this up.

After the tariffs were raised, domestic cotton prices rose accordingly, following market trends. At the time, everyone was in a difficult situation, but no one complained about it.

How come it's our group's fault that we need to lower prices now in line with market conditions?

And there's nowhere to seek justice.

"President, we have to think of a way."

"You wouldn't believe it, but because of today's newspapers, even the scholars we invited this time have started to waver in their support for us."

"It would be a real joke if they disagreed at the seminar."

Wu Rongsheng, standing to the side, looked worried.

Looking at the expressions of the two men, and seeing that everyone else was no different, Lin Yi smiled and said, "I have a solution, but doing so will not only quell public opinion, but will also offend many people."

"It all depends on whether everyone dares to offend someone."

"How to say?"

Wu Rongsheng asked, and the group of people looked at Lin Yi with curiosity.

"The association directly purchases all the cotton from farmers."

"Without middlemen taking a cut, the price is paid directly to cotton farmers at the imported cotton price, so they won't suffer any losses."

“Even further, the price is agreed upon and a deposit is paid during the planting season each year, with the balance paid after the autumn harvest, which better protects the rights and interests of cotton farmers.”

"However, doing so will inevitably cut off the source of income for many people."

“Cutting off someone’s livelihood is like killing their parents; it’s bound to offend people.”

Everyone: "..."

"Of course, this is easier said than done. It is not an easy task to organize it in various places."

“If everyone agrees to do this, I suggest that we ask the government for help when negotiating with the Nationalist government.”

"Even if we take a step back and assume that this matter ultimately fails, as long as we come up with this solution, the current public opinion will crumble on its own."

"In short, they can't blame us."

Lin Yi wanted to get this done, since it would definitely be a very beneficial thing for cotton farmers.

But he also knew how difficult this matter was...