Wanjin Lady

Chapter 150 Quarrel
After that, Wen Wan presented the policy paper, which she had written for nearly twenty days. Including the first draft, after some deletions and cuts, and the incorporation of many allusions provided by Zhao Heng, and the use of embellished words and taboos, this was already the fifth draft.

Compared to the first disaster relief policy paper she wrote with full confidence, Wen Wan was more prepared this time, but seemed less confident.

She had pondered over Cheng Yunzhang's policy paper repeatedly, and after taking it apart and reading it carefully, she had to admit that the value of the ancient Juren was comparable to that of the provincial champion in later generations.

No matter how future generations mock the eight-legged essay and denounce its drawbacks, those who are produced through the same selection mechanism can still be considered talents.

Cheng Yunzhang's article quotes from classics and is clearly organized. While expressing his own arguments, it also presents a beautiful scene of flourishing flowers.

Wen Wan said...it's beyond her reach!

At this moment, her article was openly placed on Mr. Yao's book for the three top students to appreciate and appreciate.

Oh no, the poor student was publicly executed.

Wenwan drank tea calmly. As long as she was not embarrassed, others would be embarrassed.

"This essay...is a huge improvement over the last one..." Seeing Wen Wan's tense expression, Old Madam Yao spoke first, though with a touch of comfort and encouragement. "This time, it uses many allusions, and the writing is more fluent. It's quite commendable."

Wen Wan automatically translated in her mind: This shit... doesn't look good... but it's edible.

Cheng Yunzhang frowned slightly, reciting each word with a shaky voice: "The main economic system is a single... an agricultural economy based on crop production, supplemented by animal husbandry as a supporting economic measure... This is the structural model of the entire social and economic system of the Great Chen Dynasty."

Wen Wan's throat rolled, and she looked up and asked, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

Cheng Yunzhang shook his head and laughed, "It's just that... Miss Wen's writing style is very unique."

Yao Shizhen stifled a laugh. "Other people's writing is like a riot of flowers, floating like celestial beings, piling on all the gorgeous words in the world. But this girl, writing is like an old man plowing the field, hammering down with a bang, and a hole is created. It's straight and straight, with no sense of beauty at all!"

Cheng Yunzhang smiled, "I feel the same way. I feel that Miss Wen's policy proposal... seems..."

He curled the corners of his lips slightly, looking at Wen Wan with a smile that narrowed his eyes, "It looks like the work of a warrior!"

He paused again, then added slowly, "Reading between the lines... it was like a punch to my face..."

Wen Wan: ...Why make personal attacks?

Yao Shizhen laughed heartily, pointed at Cheng Yunzhang's nose and cursed: "You little bastard...you are so mean!"

Madam Yao quickly tried to smooth things over cheerfully, "I think this writing style is simple and unpretentious, returning to nature!"

Seeing Wen Wan's displeasure, Yao Shizhen half-cheered, half-laughed, "Putting aside your literary style, your ideas about business are truly fantastic. They say we rely on nature for our livelihood, so why do you think that emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce is a constraint on commercial development and advocate for liberating labor from the fields? Do you know that agriculture is the foundation of a dynasty? Merchants don't produce, but are born to speculate and pursue profit. If we don't suppress merchants, the people will give up farming, and the grain yield will inevitably decrease. In the long run, this will threaten the foundation of the country."

Alas, I just looked up to this little girl, thinking that she would have some eye-opening ideas, but I never expected that she was still limited by the vision of merchants. The focus of the article was still to cheer for the merchants. No matter what, it was ultimately for their own interests.

Yao Shizhen sighed, "All the goods and treasures created by heaven and earth are limited to this amount. If they are not in the hands of the people, then they are in the government. One increases while the other decreases."

Wen Wan understood this.

This means that the wealth that can be produced in the world is fixed and fixed, and it either flows into the national treasury or into the hands of the people. When the national treasury is full, the people are poor; when the national treasury is empty, the wealth is hidden from the people.

The young lady retorted calmly, "I think that if you want to enrich your country, you must rely on the world. If you want to enrich the world, you must rely on heaven and earth."

Wen Wan refuted Yao Shizhen's statement that "the goods and wealth produced by heaven and earth are limited to this number." She believed that the products produced by heaven and earth could be increased, and were not fixed.

Wen Wan quoted Zhao Heng's words to continue refuting Old Master Yao's point of view: "Old Master Yao, since you know that wealth and all things are created by heaven and earth, how can you stop creating them? How can you count them? Today, the treasures of the mountains and seas, the gold of Lishui, the jade of Kunshan, the copper, lead, silver, tin, and all the other metals and treasures produced in the earth are all flowing into the shops of merchants every day, filling the pockets of corrupt officials. Who knows how much there is. What is important for governing a country is to take advantage of the benefits of heaven and earth and create them in a proper way."

The point is: Who says the total output of heaven and earth remains constant? So much silver is not only in the government, but also in the private sector, and even among the powerful and wealthy classes in between!

Old Master Yao was speechless after being confronted by her, and stared at Wen Wan blankly.

This girl is so greedy!

He said to save money, Wenwan said to increase revenue.

He said that the total amount of social wealth remains unchanged, Wen Wan said that social wealth can increase indefinitely.

The two of them stared at each other, neither giving in.

Cheng Yunzhang smiled and said, "The way to govern a country is to first enrich the people. A rich people is easy to govern, but a poor one is difficult to govern. In fact, whether it is governing a country or doing business, the foundation lies in the people. 'Taking care of the people' and 'enriching the people' are the guarantee of long-term stability in the country."

Yao Shizhen's expression softened.

"People look down on businessmen, criticizing them for their hustle and bustle, their love of profit, but Guan Zhong once said, 'It is human nature to seize profit and avoid harm.' Clearly, even Guan Zhong didn't deny the human desire for profit."

"Furthermore, 'righteousness' means to treat each person as he sees fit. Different people have different expectations of righteousness and profit. Merchants' activities can add wealth to society, and this is the 'righteousness' of merchants."

Wen Wan's eloquent statement, "Always compete with those who share your interests, never argue with fools," provoked a rebuttal from Yao Shizhen, who said, "Merchants profit from reselling, making money without any effort, driven solely by profit. They have been looked down upon since ancient times. Emperor Gaozu of Chen once said, 'Agriculture is the primary occupation of the world, while craftsmen and merchants are secondary.' Merchants were even listed as one of the 'Five Pests,' and wealth was considered the antithesis of benevolence, righteousness, and profit."

"You refute me with Guan Zhong's words, so I'll counter with his own: Merchants travel twice as fast, stretching their days and nights, making a thousand miles seem like a distance. This is because profit is their priority. Merchants are parasites, draining even the nation for profit."

"According to what you said... The Great Chen Dynasty was an agricultural society, and the only factor that creates value in an agricultural society is land..."

Old Master Yao was indeed a scholar. Although this was his first time encountering Wen Wan's ideas, he quickly understood and applied them flexibly. "Then it is land that can generate a lot of wealth. In an agricultural society, the court must ensure that the treasury is full, and it must strictly control the number of merchants to prevent farmers from abandoning farming and taking up business. Emphasizing agriculture is the goal, and suppressing commerce is the means."

"So, ultimately, the low status of merchants is a necessary measure for maintaining stability. The policy and culture of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce is fundamentally about protecting the basic survival interests of the majority of people. The core of this concept is to ensure that the general public is free from the threat of hunger." Old Man Yao pointed at her policy paper. "This is the exact words in your article!"

"You need to read the second half." Wen Wan's hands trembled as she moved the policy paper back. "Isn't the rest of this a refutation of the contempt for merchants? It raises the status of merchants, promotes economic activity, and stimulates domestic demand... You said emphasizing agriculture is the goal and suppressing commerce is the means, but why can't both industry and commerce be the foundation?"

The voices of the two men's impassioned speeches echoed in the lobby.

One old and one young, neither was willing to give in.

Mrs. Yao listened with a smile on her face and was very attentive.

Old Master Yao turned his head and looked at Cheng Yunzhang who was watching the show on the side, "Xiu Wen, tell me..."

Wen Wan also said, "Yes, Mr. Cheng, who do you think is right, me or Mr. Yao?"

Cheng Yunzhang, who was just happily enjoying the melon, suddenly got himself into trouble.

He looked at the two valiant fighting cocks, blinked, and suddenly turned his gaze to Madam Yao. "Master's wife, it's time for dinner, isn't it?"

(End of this chapter)