Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

"In this way, all countries within the influence of the Ming Dynasty will become part of the trade system and future customs union with the Ming Dynasty as the core."

"And once."

"Wait a minute, Mr. Jiang."

Zheng He interrupted Jiang Xinghuo and asked a question.

"I can understand tariffs, but what do the tariff compact and the future customs union mean?"

As early as the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Wugong of the Song Dynasty issued a decree based on the commercial development of Suiyang City, the capital of the Song Dynasty at that time, to allow some personnel who guarded the city gates and managed commerce to "reward the gates and levy the taxes", which was later called "tariffs". This is the "Conquest of Guanshi", which is also a tariff. "Zhou Li Tianguan" also records: "The tax of Guanshi is for the king's food and clothing." The Zhou Dynasty also collected part of the customs duties from the vassal states to satisfy the royal family. needs.

Therefore, this ancient concept can be fully understood by people in the Ming Dynasty.

But the tariff contract and the future customs union are somewhat difficult for them to understand.

Jiang Xinghuo paused and explained to him first: "The so-called tariff contract is the tariff rules established through the conclusion of a tariff trade contract between two or more countries. There are two types with completely different properties: one One is a self-agreed tariff contract, that is, through a contract, each other provides each other with certain preferential treatment tariff rates on the basis of voluntary reciprocity; the other is a one-sided tariff contract, that is, one country signs an agreement under the coercion of another country , a tariff rate that provides one-sided preferential treatment.”

"Which one is Mr. Jiang talking about? The second one?" Zheng He asked tentatively.

Jiang Xinghuo's answer was slightly beyond Zheng He's expectations.

"Of course it's the first one."

"Why? The Ming Dynasty was so powerful, shouldn't it use the second method, which is a one-sided agreement on tariff contracts, to obtain more trade and trade benefits?" Zhu Gaoxu was a little confused.

According to his understanding, not sending troops directly to rob was already considered a mercy, so how could there be a fair deal? If we want fair trade, am I so powerful?

Jiang Xinghuo didn't explain too much, just said it lightly.

"What is free is the most expensive; what is fair is the most unfair."

After hearing this, the three of them fell into thinking for a moment, and seemed to have gained something.

"In fact, signing a tariff contract fairly is also a prerequisite for establishing a customs union in the future. After all, in a geo-trading system, if the tariff contract is unfair, it will be difficult for the customs union to be maintained for a long time."

Otherwise, wouldn’t it mean that Da Ming and you are in a heart-to-heart relationship, and you are playing tricks with Da Ming?

"As for what a customs union is, this is the next stage of global trade. It will only appear when trade competition occurs. You only need to understand the concept of tariff competition with different regions as the main body."

“The so-called customs union refers to, for example, the Ming Dynasty’s alliance with some countries. The alliance completely abolished tariff restrictions on commodity trade, allowing goods to flow freely among the alliance countries, and adopted unified policies on imported goods from countries outside the alliance. Taxation restrictions are not available for the time being.”

Jiang Xinghuo added in his heart that he might not be able to see it in his lifetime.

After all, if Ming Dynasty really took the lead in starting the first industrial revolution, then with Ming Dynasty’s size, it would not be able to achieve a global lead of at least three hundred years. This kind of lead is the only one.

Of course, with the population and military technology conditions of today's era, it is unrealistic for the Ming Dynasty to directly rule West Asia, Western Europe and other places. Therefore, if it is really in the future of this world that the era of the second industrial revolution begins, then the Ming Dynasty will China’s global hegemony is likely to face challenges from latecomers in some regions.

This kind of challenge may not necessarily pose a huge threat militarily or politically, but it is destined to happen economically, so when that time comes, a customs union will be necessary.

In Jiang Xinghuo's previous life, why could Dai Ying be able to hold on for so long after retreating from the position of the Empire on which the Sun Never Sets? To put it bluntly, the trading system consisting of a series of parts such as raw materials and commodity dumping sites has not collapsed.

As long as the trade system is preserved, the internal and external circulation will not stagnate, and it will still have the ability to rise again.

"There is another benefit to building a Ming-led trade system with the tariff contract as the core."

"Is there another benefit?" Zheng He was startled, but he couldn't think of it.

Jiang Xinghuo nodded slightly: "Yes, this guy has never heard of it, but he has heard that it is offshore silver banknotes. As long as it is a country within the Ming Dynasty's trading system, regardless of whether it is exporting rice or importing cloth, it must use Ming Dynasty money. Offshore silver notes are used for settlement.”

"This way."

Zhu Gaoxu, who had listened to "Chinese Monetary History" before, blurted out.

“In this way, Ming Dynasty can not only control the economy and people’s livelihood of other countries by affecting the prices of their main export commodities, but also directly harvest wealth through the ratio of offshore silver banknotes to silver!”

"Um."

Jiang Xinghuo did not continue, but stopped the topic at the right time and said: "These are all based on the deduction made by Master Zhuo about 'how to satisfy the need to eat after the agricultural class is partially transformed into the manual class.' Now let's continue talking. In fact, through the question just now, you probably understand how the productivity of industrial countries is reflected. What I want to talk about next is how the new 'surplus' flows among the four social classes in industrial countries. of."

"Understanding how 'surplus' flows, you will understand why I say that industrialized countries can fundamentally solve the contradiction between man and land."

Jiang Xinghuo didn't talk nonsense to them, and continued to write with a thick branch beside the formula of the three social classes and national wealth of the previous agricultural country.

Landlord class: fields, land rent (remuneration paid for input into fields)

Agricultural class: labor, surplus agricultural products (remuneration paid to agricultural labor)

Craftsmanship owner class: assets, interest margin (remuneration paid for asset investment)

Manual class: labor, wages (remuneration paid for manual labor)

"These are the four social classes in industrial countries that I just mentioned. Among them, the manual class has the same name as the manual class in agricultural countries, but their nature has changed."

Jiang Xinghuo explained this transformation in detail. At this point, he seemed to be particularly patient.

".Due to the increase in the class of handicraft manufacturers, the handicraft class in industrial countries no longer directly exchange handicrafts with the agricultural class for surplus agricultural products. Instead, they receive wages from the class of handicraft manufacturers and then use the wages to purchase surplus agricultural products. and other goods and services necessary for life, can you understand?”

Seeing the three people nodding, Jiang Xinghuo continued.

"In the era of industrial countries, the formula for forming national wealth is different from that of agricultural countries."

The total national wealth of an agricultural country = the surplus agricultural products of the agricultural class + the surplus agricultural products of the landlord class + the surplus agricultural products of the artisanal class

The total national wealth of industrialized countries = land rent + surplus agricultural products + interest differential + wages

"In this formula, we assume that the country has just evolved from an agricultural country to an industrial country. During this period, it is foreseeable that the surplus agricultural products in the hands of the agricultural class will be just enough to support their families, as in the past."

Jiang Xinghuo was silent for a few moments and then said: "The wages of the craftsmen are also survival wages."

"What is subsistence wages?" Zhu Gaoxu asked.

"Subsistence wages are wages paid by the handicraft factory owner class to support the survival of the handicraft class. When converted into surplus agricultural products, the quantity is greater than what the handicraft class obtained in the past." Jiang Xinghuo replied.

"Why so many?"

As soon as Zhu Gaoxu said it, he knew he had asked a stupid question.

"If engaging in handicrafts cannot yield more benefits than in the past, then no one will take the initiative to engage in it, and it will not be able to attract the agricultural class to transform into the handicraft class. Of course, it is only in greater numbers, but it is incompatible with this new way of life. What comes together is the destruction of traditional life, and it’s hard to tell what is right and what is wrong.”

"But it sounds pretty good?" Zheng He said.

“It’s getting more bang for the buck than it used to be, and it just sounds good.”

Jiang Xinghuo said sadly: "For the owners of handicraft factories, letting workers have enough food to work is the same as lubricating the rotating shaft of the spinning machine, so this part of the salary must be paid, not who Conscience finds out.”

Jiang Xinghuo shook his head and put the emotions in his mind aside for the time being.

After all, what is taught in class is pure classical political economics formulas, which are absolutely rational and cannot be substituted with too many personal emotions. Otherwise, it will be disrespectful to this knowledge that can derive dragon-slaying skills.

"Back to the formula."

"What I want to tell you is that in the early days of the industrialized country, the surplus agricultural products obtained by the agricultural class and the wages obtained by the manual class were both ignored in the overall consideration of national wealth. What we mainly calculate is, It is the ground rent of the landlord class and the interest rate difference of the handicraft factory owner class.”

Jiang Xinghuo pointed to the formula on the ground and said.

“In other words, land rent plus interest rate difference is the ‘surplus’ of national wealth in the era of industrial countries.”

"And if the handicrafts factory owner class and the landlord class consume all the 'surplus', then the production in the next period will be exactly the same as the previous period, but obviously this is impossible. The landlord class knows how to save food and sell it to buy How could the new fields and the class of handicraft manufacturers not know about it?”

"Remainder.Class"

Zhuo Jing twisted his beard and looked at the words on the ground. With a "pop" sound, he pulled off another beard.

"I understand!"

"Old man Zhuo, tell me quickly!" Zhu Gaoxu said repeatedly.

Zhuo Jing rolled his eyes at this ungrateful brat before saying.

"I believe that in the era of agricultural countries, the reason why the contradiction between man and land cannot be resolved is because the 'surplus', that is, the remaining agricultural products, are put into the 'cycle' of the next agricultural product production process, and such an infinite cycle, although the agricultural products The output can be increased, but it is limited by the overall number of fields. From the perspective of national wealth, no new surplus can be generated."

"I know this too!"

Ignoring Zhu Gaoxu, Zhuo Jing continued.

"In the era of industrialized countries, the profit margin obtained by the handicrafts factory owner class can be used to accumulate like land rent and then be invested in the next round of 'cycle' production, expand the site, purchase equipment, hire the handicraft class, or export it to the outside world. goods produced.”

Zhuo Jing said slowly: "This is equivalent to breaking through the internal 'circulation' of the agricultural country era and starting a new 'circulation' from the outside. In this way, in the production process one after another, the handicraft factory owner class has gained The interest rate differential will get bigger and bigger, and it is not limited by the overall number of fields like the landlord class."

"That is to say."

Zhu Gaoxu suddenly said: "National wealth is no longer limited by land. In theory, if Ming's overseas market is large enough, it can continue to expand national wealth!"

Jiang Xinghuo nodded slightly and filled in the small loophole just now.

"For all classes in the Ming Dynasty, what I gain is no longer what the other person loses! If the national wealth increases to a certain level, then the agricultural class and the craftsman class will also benefit. In addition to subsistence wages, there will also be Remaining wages.”