Chapter 1287
Threshold of Industrial Society
Chapter 1287 Threshold of Industrial Society
Liu Shang wanted to get a glimpse of the mysteries of Haihan military industry here, but he didn't know that this place was just the place where the raw materials were produced.Haihan's real military manufacturing units are all concentrated in the Sanya Tiandu Industrial Zone. On the one hand, it is for the needs of technical secrecy and production process arrangements, and on the other hand, it is for the security needs of consolidating Haihan's rule.
The Haihan Executive Committee is very aware that the territory it controls is huge, and many places are thousands of miles overseas. Just relying on political maintenance cannot ensure long-term stable rule, and military suppression will also have to be carried out. to great effect.However, the garrison is out all year round and is not under control. It may be that after a long time, some generals in charge of the army will have other thoughts, and some people may be bold enough to launch a rebellion.
In order to put an end to this situation, the most effective way is of course to limit the supply of weapons and equipment.This kind of restriction does not refer to simple control of the quantity of weapons and ammunition supplied, but to the overall control of weapons manufacturing technology and equipment, so that other places except Sanya are not equipped to manufacture high-end weapons such as guns and warships in the army. Ability.As long as overseas colonies cannot manufacture high-end weapons and equipment by themselves, even if someone wants to rebel locally, it will be difficult to make a big deal.
Therefore, although there are many military-related processing workshops in the Changhua Industrial Zone, almost all of them are arranged to produce raw materials and blanks, and there are no workshops for processing key parts and assembling weapons.All raw materials and components produced and processed here are shipped back to Sanya for processing and assembly.Although such an arrangement will add a lot of extra cost and time, it is certainly worthwhile for the purpose of maintaining a stable rule.
However, for a special person like Liu Shang, the gains from this trip are extremely limited. Iron and steel smelting is both familiar and unfamiliar to him. Before he came here, he only thought of the scale of Changhua's smelting industry. It's relatively large, but after visiting, I realized that there is too much professional knowledge in this industry that I don't understand at all.If you want to understand Haihan's smelting technology, it is definitely impossible to just take a quick look at it.
Although I have seen a lot of unheard-of steam processing equipment, they are only used for rough processing of metal materials, and have not involved the key links of real weapon manufacturing and assembly. I want to visit Haihan Weapon Manufacturing from here. The purpose of the craft is basically completely defeated.
Of course, being able to see Haihan's advanced steel smelting technology and production scale here is also very valuable information for Liu Shang's camp.Although the information he has is relatively fragmented and one-sided, at least it can be inferred that Haihan's attainments in smelting are as good as they are in other fields, and the metal products he can manufacture are not just the weapons he imagined before. As with daily utensils, those large-scale equipment used to process metal are also made of metal, and Haihan seems to value these processing methods and equipment more than smelting steel.
Is this the industry that Haihan people talk about all the time?Liu Shang was not sure in his heart, but he did not dare to ask Yu Xiaobao and others about this question. The tasks he undertook in this inspection team had nothing to do with industry, and it was inevitable that he would raise such a question rashly. The risk that attracted Zhang Qianzhi's attention.
However, in the subsequent publicity activities, Yu Xiaobao's speech finally let Liu Shang know Haihan's general definition of industry.According to Haihan, the work and process of collecting raw materials and processing them into products can be called industry.Liu Shang felt that speaking of it this way, Daming actually had an industry, but it might not be as developed as Haihan.
However, in Yu Xiaobao's next speech, he defined the industry currently owned by Daming as a handicraft industry, that is, activities that basically rely on manual labor for production.The road that Haihan has to take now is to let some domestic industries get rid of the low-efficiency handicraft industry stage and upgrade to a more advanced machine industry stage.It is a new type of business that replaces manpower with machines and replaces manual labor with mechanized labor.This kind of machine industry is not only absent in Ming Dynasty, but other countries in the world have not yet had a similar form. Only Haihan Kingdom is the only one in the world, taking the lead in entering the era of machine industry.
"...What we are doing now is a great cause that has never been done before, or even never imagined. The arrival of the industrial society will soon change the appearance of Haihan Country. Industry will allow us to have a wealth of Products and a strong army, and based on this, we will grow our national strength, so that all citizens can live a prosperous and stable life! Haihan will become a unique power in the world in the future, and you are the foundation for our country to enter the industrial society People and great heroes!"
Yu Xiaobao's provocative speech on the stage won warm applause from the audience, and Liu Shang also pretended to follow suit, but he felt very uncomfortable in his heart.He can feel that Yu Xiaobao's speech is not pure bragging. The Haihan people are indeed proud of their achievements at this stage, and they also firmly believe that these goals and visions proposed by the executive committee will be realized. .
The most powerful country in the world!What an arrogant goal, Liu Shang didn't even dare to say that Daming, who is currently suffering from internal and external troubles, can still enjoy this title.However, it has only been eight years since Haihan appeared in the South China Sea, and it has only been more than a year since Jianguo, and he has already proposed such a big goal, and he didn't even mean to regard Daming as a competitor at all. Liu Shang, who has always regarded himself as a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, is indeed somewhat difficult to accept.
But if we let Haihan continue to develop at the current momentum, Liu Shang can't think of what kind of situation it will develop in eight or ten years, and he doesn't dare to think about it.The two southeastern provinces of Daming have gradually lost the courage and ability to contend with Haihan, and as the Haihan controlled area moves northward, the coastal areas in the east and north of Daming seem to be in jeopardy.For such a dangerous change in the situation, it is not that Ming is unaware of people with discerning eyes, but it seems powerless to do anything to change the balance of power between the two sides, so as to strive for an active position in the relationship between the two countries.
It's not that Ming's national strength is inferior to Haihan's, which has a population of only a few hundred thousand. It's just that there is no way to concentrate resources in the southeast region to cope with Haihan's continuous expansion.Regardless of whether it is military strength or financial resources, Da Ming does not have enough strength to fight against Haihan in some areas where Haihan has a greater influence. He can only watch Haihan expand northward bit by bit on the sea.
After Liu Shang came to Hainan Island to see it for himself, he became even more convinced of the rumors that the Hai Han people had mastered a lot of magical powers to rejuvenate the country. Development failed to find a clear direction.On the premise of disregarding the crusade, Liu Shang has been looking for the social contradictions in Haihan, hoping to stir up Haihan's rule through civil strife, but it can be said that this period of time has been fruitless, and there is no suitable solution. Chance.
Where is the hope?While listening to Yu Xiaobao's political speech on the stage, Liu Shang was thinking hard about the method of change.He has also read a lot of historical books and classics, and knows that when the society changes drastically, there will be many obvious and hidden conflicts of interest. As long as these opportunities can be used well, it may not be impossible to disrupt the situation in Haihan.
But Liu Shang had to admit that the social situation in Haihan was too stable, and most of the people lived without worrying about food and clothing. Even if someone pushed it, how many people would be able to rebel?What's more, the prestige and status of the Haihan Executive Committee in the country is astonishingly high. Liu Shang can feel that ordinary people have transferred their awe of the imperial power to the Executive Committee. Many people have even worshiped it as a kind of belief. Its firmness is not so easily shaken by external forces.In addition, the power of the Shanghai Han army is in the hands of the Hai Han people themselves, and he has no chance to contact these high-level generals, let alone start to make efforts.
Although he still has a little understanding of the concept of industry, Liu Shang can faintly feel that if the Haihan people really realize the industrialization they have been advocating and advocating for a long time, then there may be a gap in the strength of the two countries. At that time, if Da Ming wants to recover from the disadvantage, his hope will be even slimmer.It's just that I don't know how long it will be before this point in time. Neither Yu Xiaobao nor the other Haihan officials he has contacted so far have mentioned specific figures, and Liu Shang doesn't dare to speculate on such things.But the more it is like this, the more difficult it is for him to feel at ease, this is like a sharp sword hanging over Daming's head, no one knows when this sword will stab down.
At this time, Yu Xiaobao had finished his speech, gave up his seat to Qiao Zhiya, and got down and sat in the first row.The subject of Qiao Zhiya's speech was even more explicit. He compared Haihan, which had begun to industrialize, to a higher-level country, and the surrounding traditional countries such as Daming and Annan could only send raw materials and Relatively cheap items such as manpower, and after Haihan makes full use of them, the items produced will be resold to these countries, of course, the price has already doubled several times.
"Compared with countries that are gradually industrializing like my country, traditional agricultural countries can only play the role of raw material producers and terminal markets. They will only become more and more passive in terms of economy, culture, military affairs, and politics. Leading by the nose, this is an irreversible historical trend!" Qiao Zhiya on the stage unceremoniously expressed his views on the current international situation.
If it weren't for the officials from the Ministry of Security sitting next to him, Liu Shang would have liked to give Qiao Zhiya a big roll of his eyes, but he had to continue to pretend to applaud to show his approval.The audience present were all local grassroots officials and foremen. Naturally, they would not have any doubts about Qiao Zhiya's words. On the contrary, everyone showed excitement on their faces, and they were obviously quite proud of the scene that Qiao Zhiya described. .
Then I heard Qiao Zhiya continue to say: "Director Yu also mentioned just now that my country's industrialization process is unique in the world, and it has become the most powerful country in the South China Sea relying on industry. Why can we do it, and the neighboring countries that are much stronger than us But can’t do it? Do you know where the threshold is?”
When Liu Shang heard this, he immediately put aside his distracting thoughts, and pricked up his ears to listen to what Qiao Zhiya said next.If he can figure out the secret of Haihan's road to becoming a powerful country, then maybe it can also bring some help to the development of Daming.
But before Qiao Zhiya could speak, the excited audience below responded loudly: "It's our executive committee!"
Qiao Zhiya was not angry about the unauthorized response from the audience, but gave affirmation: "That's right! It is the Executive Committee. With the development outline formulated by the Executive Committee for our country, Haihan can become a powerful country in the South China Sea in just a few years. All of you here can live a stable and prosperous life here!"
Liu Shang was immediately disappointed. He thought that Qiao Zhiya would disclose some unknown policy here, but he didn't expect that the topic changed and he returned to political propaganda.The role of the Executive Committee in Haihan Kingdom is like the cabinet of Ming Dynasty. Almost all administrative outlines and national plans are formulated and promulgated by it, guiding and supervising its implementation.It is said that the big figures in the executive committee are all omnipotent and omnipotent gods. Where can such people find replicas?
The rapid development of Haihan Kingdom is naturally inseparable from the good governance of the Executive Committee, but there is no way to copy it to Daming for use. Could it be that the cabinet scholars resigned and vacated their seats for these Haihan people? seat?Take a ten thousand step back and say that even if this step can be achieved, let Haihan move the executive committee to Daming to operate, then who should listen to who between the executive committee and the emperor?The cabinet is only the emperor's advisory body, while the executive committee is the highest power holder in Haihan, the contradiction between these must be irreconcilable.
Liu Shang's mind was filled with such messy thoughts for a while, but in fact, if he thought about it a little bit, he knew that it was impossible to realize it.Da Ming couldn't emulate Hai Han's governing model, unless the whole world was handed over to the Hai Han people to govern, but wouldn't Da Ming die in that case?
The threshold mentioned by Qiao Zhiya is absurd at first glance, but it is an irrefutable fact when you think about it carefully.The countries around Haihan respect the imperial power, and there is no executive committee that can spare no effort to promote the process of industrialization. How can they completely follow Haihan's approach?
The more Liu Shang thought about it, the more frustrated he became. He knew that it would be difficult for Da Ming to catch up with Hai Han's development speed by imitating him.Thinking about An Nanguo's wholehearted vassalage under Haihan, even a large coal mine like Heitu Port was dedicated to Haihan. Of course, they also received a lot of support from Haihan, and even the army was trained by Haihan, but But I have never heard of an existence like Changhua Industrial Zone in Annan State.Even if the relationship between Annan and Haihan cannot be achieved, it will be even more difficult for Da Ming to cross this threshold.
(End of this chapter)
Liu Shang wanted to get a glimpse of the mysteries of Haihan military industry here, but he didn't know that this place was just the place where the raw materials were produced.Haihan's real military manufacturing units are all concentrated in the Sanya Tiandu Industrial Zone. On the one hand, it is for the needs of technical secrecy and production process arrangements, and on the other hand, it is for the security needs of consolidating Haihan's rule.
The Haihan Executive Committee is very aware that the territory it controls is huge, and many places are thousands of miles overseas. Just relying on political maintenance cannot ensure long-term stable rule, and military suppression will also have to be carried out. to great effect.However, the garrison is out all year round and is not under control. It may be that after a long time, some generals in charge of the army will have other thoughts, and some people may be bold enough to launch a rebellion.
In order to put an end to this situation, the most effective way is of course to limit the supply of weapons and equipment.This kind of restriction does not refer to simple control of the quantity of weapons and ammunition supplied, but to the overall control of weapons manufacturing technology and equipment, so that other places except Sanya are not equipped to manufacture high-end weapons such as guns and warships in the army. Ability.As long as overseas colonies cannot manufacture high-end weapons and equipment by themselves, even if someone wants to rebel locally, it will be difficult to make a big deal.
Therefore, although there are many military-related processing workshops in the Changhua Industrial Zone, almost all of them are arranged to produce raw materials and blanks, and there are no workshops for processing key parts and assembling weapons.All raw materials and components produced and processed here are shipped back to Sanya for processing and assembly.Although such an arrangement will add a lot of extra cost and time, it is certainly worthwhile for the purpose of maintaining a stable rule.
However, for a special person like Liu Shang, the gains from this trip are extremely limited. Iron and steel smelting is both familiar and unfamiliar to him. Before he came here, he only thought of the scale of Changhua's smelting industry. It's relatively large, but after visiting, I realized that there is too much professional knowledge in this industry that I don't understand at all.If you want to understand Haihan's smelting technology, it is definitely impossible to just take a quick look at it.
Although I have seen a lot of unheard-of steam processing equipment, they are only used for rough processing of metal materials, and have not involved the key links of real weapon manufacturing and assembly. I want to visit Haihan Weapon Manufacturing from here. The purpose of the craft is basically completely defeated.
Of course, being able to see Haihan's advanced steel smelting technology and production scale here is also very valuable information for Liu Shang's camp.Although the information he has is relatively fragmented and one-sided, at least it can be inferred that Haihan's attainments in smelting are as good as they are in other fields, and the metal products he can manufacture are not just the weapons he imagined before. As with daily utensils, those large-scale equipment used to process metal are also made of metal, and Haihan seems to value these processing methods and equipment more than smelting steel.
Is this the industry that Haihan people talk about all the time?Liu Shang was not sure in his heart, but he did not dare to ask Yu Xiaobao and others about this question. The tasks he undertook in this inspection team had nothing to do with industry, and it was inevitable that he would raise such a question rashly. The risk that attracted Zhang Qianzhi's attention.
However, in the subsequent publicity activities, Yu Xiaobao's speech finally let Liu Shang know Haihan's general definition of industry.According to Haihan, the work and process of collecting raw materials and processing them into products can be called industry.Liu Shang felt that speaking of it this way, Daming actually had an industry, but it might not be as developed as Haihan.
However, in Yu Xiaobao's next speech, he defined the industry currently owned by Daming as a handicraft industry, that is, activities that basically rely on manual labor for production.The road that Haihan has to take now is to let some domestic industries get rid of the low-efficiency handicraft industry stage and upgrade to a more advanced machine industry stage.It is a new type of business that replaces manpower with machines and replaces manual labor with mechanized labor.This kind of machine industry is not only absent in Ming Dynasty, but other countries in the world have not yet had a similar form. Only Haihan Kingdom is the only one in the world, taking the lead in entering the era of machine industry.
"...What we are doing now is a great cause that has never been done before, or even never imagined. The arrival of the industrial society will soon change the appearance of Haihan Country. Industry will allow us to have a wealth of Products and a strong army, and based on this, we will grow our national strength, so that all citizens can live a prosperous and stable life! Haihan will become a unique power in the world in the future, and you are the foundation for our country to enter the industrial society People and great heroes!"
Yu Xiaobao's provocative speech on the stage won warm applause from the audience, and Liu Shang also pretended to follow suit, but he felt very uncomfortable in his heart.He can feel that Yu Xiaobao's speech is not pure bragging. The Haihan people are indeed proud of their achievements at this stage, and they also firmly believe that these goals and visions proposed by the executive committee will be realized. .
The most powerful country in the world!What an arrogant goal, Liu Shang didn't even dare to say that Daming, who is currently suffering from internal and external troubles, can still enjoy this title.However, it has only been eight years since Haihan appeared in the South China Sea, and it has only been more than a year since Jianguo, and he has already proposed such a big goal, and he didn't even mean to regard Daming as a competitor at all. Liu Shang, who has always regarded himself as a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, is indeed somewhat difficult to accept.
But if we let Haihan continue to develop at the current momentum, Liu Shang can't think of what kind of situation it will develop in eight or ten years, and he doesn't dare to think about it.The two southeastern provinces of Daming have gradually lost the courage and ability to contend with Haihan, and as the Haihan controlled area moves northward, the coastal areas in the east and north of Daming seem to be in jeopardy.For such a dangerous change in the situation, it is not that Ming is unaware of people with discerning eyes, but it seems powerless to do anything to change the balance of power between the two sides, so as to strive for an active position in the relationship between the two countries.
It's not that Ming's national strength is inferior to Haihan's, which has a population of only a few hundred thousand. It's just that there is no way to concentrate resources in the southeast region to cope with Haihan's continuous expansion.Regardless of whether it is military strength or financial resources, Da Ming does not have enough strength to fight against Haihan in some areas where Haihan has a greater influence. He can only watch Haihan expand northward bit by bit on the sea.
After Liu Shang came to Hainan Island to see it for himself, he became even more convinced of the rumors that the Hai Han people had mastered a lot of magical powers to rejuvenate the country. Development failed to find a clear direction.On the premise of disregarding the crusade, Liu Shang has been looking for the social contradictions in Haihan, hoping to stir up Haihan's rule through civil strife, but it can be said that this period of time has been fruitless, and there is no suitable solution. Chance.
Where is the hope?While listening to Yu Xiaobao's political speech on the stage, Liu Shang was thinking hard about the method of change.He has also read a lot of historical books and classics, and knows that when the society changes drastically, there will be many obvious and hidden conflicts of interest. As long as these opportunities can be used well, it may not be impossible to disrupt the situation in Haihan.
But Liu Shang had to admit that the social situation in Haihan was too stable, and most of the people lived without worrying about food and clothing. Even if someone pushed it, how many people would be able to rebel?What's more, the prestige and status of the Haihan Executive Committee in the country is astonishingly high. Liu Shang can feel that ordinary people have transferred their awe of the imperial power to the Executive Committee. Many people have even worshiped it as a kind of belief. Its firmness is not so easily shaken by external forces.In addition, the power of the Shanghai Han army is in the hands of the Hai Han people themselves, and he has no chance to contact these high-level generals, let alone start to make efforts.
Although he still has a little understanding of the concept of industry, Liu Shang can faintly feel that if the Haihan people really realize the industrialization they have been advocating and advocating for a long time, then there may be a gap in the strength of the two countries. At that time, if Da Ming wants to recover from the disadvantage, his hope will be even slimmer.It's just that I don't know how long it will be before this point in time. Neither Yu Xiaobao nor the other Haihan officials he has contacted so far have mentioned specific figures, and Liu Shang doesn't dare to speculate on such things.But the more it is like this, the more difficult it is for him to feel at ease, this is like a sharp sword hanging over Daming's head, no one knows when this sword will stab down.
At this time, Yu Xiaobao had finished his speech, gave up his seat to Qiao Zhiya, and got down and sat in the first row.The subject of Qiao Zhiya's speech was even more explicit. He compared Haihan, which had begun to industrialize, to a higher-level country, and the surrounding traditional countries such as Daming and Annan could only send raw materials and Relatively cheap items such as manpower, and after Haihan makes full use of them, the items produced will be resold to these countries, of course, the price has already doubled several times.
"Compared with countries that are gradually industrializing like my country, traditional agricultural countries can only play the role of raw material producers and terminal markets. They will only become more and more passive in terms of economy, culture, military affairs, and politics. Leading by the nose, this is an irreversible historical trend!" Qiao Zhiya on the stage unceremoniously expressed his views on the current international situation.
If it weren't for the officials from the Ministry of Security sitting next to him, Liu Shang would have liked to give Qiao Zhiya a big roll of his eyes, but he had to continue to pretend to applaud to show his approval.The audience present were all local grassroots officials and foremen. Naturally, they would not have any doubts about Qiao Zhiya's words. On the contrary, everyone showed excitement on their faces, and they were obviously quite proud of the scene that Qiao Zhiya described. .
Then I heard Qiao Zhiya continue to say: "Director Yu also mentioned just now that my country's industrialization process is unique in the world, and it has become the most powerful country in the South China Sea relying on industry. Why can we do it, and the neighboring countries that are much stronger than us But can’t do it? Do you know where the threshold is?”
When Liu Shang heard this, he immediately put aside his distracting thoughts, and pricked up his ears to listen to what Qiao Zhiya said next.If he can figure out the secret of Haihan's road to becoming a powerful country, then maybe it can also bring some help to the development of Daming.
But before Qiao Zhiya could speak, the excited audience below responded loudly: "It's our executive committee!"
Qiao Zhiya was not angry about the unauthorized response from the audience, but gave affirmation: "That's right! It is the Executive Committee. With the development outline formulated by the Executive Committee for our country, Haihan can become a powerful country in the South China Sea in just a few years. All of you here can live a stable and prosperous life here!"
Liu Shang was immediately disappointed. He thought that Qiao Zhiya would disclose some unknown policy here, but he didn't expect that the topic changed and he returned to political propaganda.The role of the Executive Committee in Haihan Kingdom is like the cabinet of Ming Dynasty. Almost all administrative outlines and national plans are formulated and promulgated by it, guiding and supervising its implementation.It is said that the big figures in the executive committee are all omnipotent and omnipotent gods. Where can such people find replicas?
The rapid development of Haihan Kingdom is naturally inseparable from the good governance of the Executive Committee, but there is no way to copy it to Daming for use. Could it be that the cabinet scholars resigned and vacated their seats for these Haihan people? seat?Take a ten thousand step back and say that even if this step can be achieved, let Haihan move the executive committee to Daming to operate, then who should listen to who between the executive committee and the emperor?The cabinet is only the emperor's advisory body, while the executive committee is the highest power holder in Haihan, the contradiction between these must be irreconcilable.
Liu Shang's mind was filled with such messy thoughts for a while, but in fact, if he thought about it a little bit, he knew that it was impossible to realize it.Da Ming couldn't emulate Hai Han's governing model, unless the whole world was handed over to the Hai Han people to govern, but wouldn't Da Ming die in that case?
The threshold mentioned by Qiao Zhiya is absurd at first glance, but it is an irrefutable fact when you think about it carefully.The countries around Haihan respect the imperial power, and there is no executive committee that can spare no effort to promote the process of industrialization. How can they completely follow Haihan's approach?
The more Liu Shang thought about it, the more frustrated he became. He knew that it would be difficult for Da Ming to catch up with Hai Han's development speed by imitating him.Thinking about An Nanguo's wholehearted vassalage under Haihan, even a large coal mine like Heitu Port was dedicated to Haihan. Of course, they also received a lot of support from Haihan, and even the army was trained by Haihan, but But I have never heard of an existence like Changhua Industrial Zone in Annan State.Even if the relationship between Annan and Haihan cannot be achieved, it will be even more difficult for Da Ming to cross this threshold.
(End of this chapter)