Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 284 Who Should I Work For?

On June 9th, 2108 of the Han calendar, Xuan Chong had already boarded a cruise ship to return to his hometown; after two years away from home, he had traveled thousands of miles and learned about the affairs of the world.

Liu Dangzhen, who is Xuan Chong's current father, sent a telegram saying that he would test Xuan Chong's knowledge and experience over the past six months after Xuan Chong returned.

Xuan Chong asked the servants in advance and found that his father had been spending a lot of time at the steel mill these days and had recently been thinking about producing steel for railways.

Xuan Chong understood that his father was also a staunch supporter of farming. The foundation bricks in his hometown all bore his name.

Xuan Chong couldn't help but complain about his father: In this respect, he is just like the vassal kings of the southern vassal states; once he has capital, he has to make a fuss.

Xuan Chong has seen it all! He knows that the officials and scholars in the Han court are happy to see the princes causing trouble like this! Just like the giants behind the A-share market are happy to see retail investors enter the market and cause trouble.

Because vassal states are located in regions lacking prospects for industrialization, they will continuously incur losses after completing the initial capital accumulation period through industrialization.

One can refer to Xuan Chong's understanding of those companies before their rebirth; the systems established by the insightful vision of the first generation leader, as well as the capital and network of connections, will eventually be exhausted by the second and third generations. — This is the second and third generation: either they try to consolidate their privileges through collusion between officials and businessmen (the Samsung route), or they try to "smooth" their way to an ideal world.

In the present Han dynasty, the vassal kings cannot be corrupted. The strict laws and regulations prevent them from colluding with the central court officials. They can only wait to be harvested a hundred years later.

Japan is a scene that has already been exploited once. The former steel mills have been abandoned, and the remaining ports, roads, and bridges were built a century ago. Now, all maintenance is costly and relies on the supply chain within the current Han Dynasty. It belongs to—a developed region.

The Dongtu region is a "pre-development region," so Xuan Chong knows that the ports and assets his father is currently accumulating will eventually be seized by the current Hannei Group four or five generations later, becoming a building block for the central circle to expand outwards!
After realizing such a hopeless ending, Xuan Chong cursed, "Why not just open the shop?"

Of course, "opening up" was just an angry outburst. In the past, "opening up" meant that people could stay at home and live off their parents, without contact with the outside world or worrying about saving face. But today's princes and nobles cannot stay in their fiefdoms and live off their parents; they must go to the central region for systematic education before they can return to succeed their fathers.

People from poor areas have no voice. In his past life, when Master Hu jokingly referred to the surrounding area as the countryside, he was still restrained by "greater principles" and couldn't go too far.

In modern China, the concept of "harmony between heaven and man" is a profound principle. If the vassal kings of Han territory are too backward, they will be looked down upon.

Before Xuan Chong's time travel, Liu Haoran was bullied, but no one cared. —If development doesn't occur, generation after generation will be dragged to developed regions and subjected to the humiliation of being "barbarians"!

If you don't develop, you'll be humiliated; if you do develop, you'll be exploited! Xuan Chong: Being a vassal king is more frustrating than being a wage earner in my previous life.

...Who does the world ultimately work for?

Xuan Chong did a quick survey of newspapers from various regions to find out about the situation of train transportation and found that the current Han region has split into four economic zones.

The first is the North Xia Plain Economic Zone (Shanhe F4).

The second is the Kansai economic zone west of Hangu Pass.

The third is the Nansha Economic Zone, which mainly includes Guangdong, Guangxi, and Jiaozhi, as well as Lyu Song and Malaysia, enclosing the entire South China Sea as an inland sea.

The fourth is the largest economic zone in present-day Wuhan, the Jiangnan region.

Geographically speaking, Dongtu is supposed to be annexed by the Xiabei economic circle. However, Liu Dangzhen is now jumping around, leaping into the Jiangnan economic circle, trying to get more resources for Dongtu.

Thinking of this, Xuan Chong suddenly had a brilliant idea: what if Dongtu, Xinluo, Heiqiujiang, and Liaopingyuan were all put together? They would have mines, labor, a complete range of light and heavy industries, and abundant food. Wouldn't that be enough to sustain an economic zone?
Of course, Xuan Chong was just thinking about it, just like the Russians' attempt to establish the "Mutual Economic Confederation" in his previous life.

The countries that Russia wants to unite with are all resource-rich nations. However, Russia itself lacks the capacity to process and utilize these resources effectively.

The leader can't multiply the value of his underlings' resources from "1" to "2". Who would follow him then? And where can't the underlings exchange their resources?

What is the capability for deep processing of resources? It is the capability to process crude oil and natural gas into petrochemicals, transforming them into a variety of high-quality, low-priced, and competitive industrial products; and the capability to process steel into automobiles and lithium into lithium batteries, which are high-value-added products.

The aforementioned industrial chain requires a talent incubation mechanism. Russia, a country "just freed from serfdom culture," is severely lacking in a mechanism for "appointing the virtuous and capable."

What's worse is that Russia's densely populated areas are adjacent to Europe, and Germany and France are better at this than Russia, so all of Russia's allies have gone to Europe.

The situation in Russia is similar to that in the East. If the East really wants to industrialize, its talent will still be drawn to the south.

How to farm...

Xuan Chong, dressed in military uniform, arrived at the reserved first-class cabin.

At this point, a minor incident occurred. The staff on the cruise ship gave Xuan Chong "special service," coming over from time to time to ask (interrogate) if he needed anything else.

Xuan Chong realized that this concern was tinged with hypocrisy, and the fake smiles carried a hint of suspicion. Xuan Chong couldn't help but wonder: "Is it because I'm an officer? And too young? Or is it because I have no attendants, making me appear too poor, that I've aroused suspicion?"

So Xuan Chong borrowed the ship's telegraph to send a message home.

When the first mate on the mail ship saw that the telegram sent by Xuan Chong was addressed to the Prince's Mansion in Dongtu, he respectfully took his leave and would not bother him again, but the hot tea and desserts served were of the highest quality.

After the attitude of the staff on the mail ship made a complete 180-degree turn, Xuan Chong thought to himself, "I'm afraid that people often come here to impersonate military officers and swindle others."

Speak of the devil, and he appears. At the next stop, a conman posing as a Han Dynasty military officer walked into the cabin of the cruise ship and immediately began questioning him.

Xuan Chong paused for a moment, then demanded to see his identification, only to be met with a fierce retort: ​​"Who do you think you are, daring to look at my ID!"

Xuan Chong suddenly flew into a rage and began to beat the person opposite him mercilessly. The crew members immediately rushed over to cordon off the scene and telegraphed the maritime patrol officer to come aboard the ship.

Xuan Chong's documents were complete, especially the boarding pass, which had a series of numbers on the back. The patrol officer, after checking the stamp on Xuan Chong's pass with a colleague at the previous station (in Japan), broke out in a cold sweat. Immediately afterward, the imposter impersonating a Han Chinese officer was taken away.

Xuan Chong couldn't help but exclaim, "No wonder they're from outside the Great Wall, they all have the wisdom—(the ability to outwit Tiger Mountain)!"

The ferry attendant apologized to Xuan Chong with a smile, saying, "These kinds of things happen several times every year. I'm sorry you had to see this."

Xuan Chong was deeply shocked: "Oh, this kind of fraud is common? How do you deal with it?"

The waiter poured tea for Xuan Chong: "If it were just a small offense or a minor penalty, we would let it go, after all, we can't afford to gamble; but what you did today, which was so satisfying, is a rare thing!"

Xuan Chong nodded, understanding. If he hadn't taken direct action, escalating the situation and making it impossible to resolve peacefully, to the point that the Han army leader in the region had to take charge, then that imposter could have easily made a quick buck from him.

As for why the crew members dared not expose it, it was because they were afraid—what if it was true? Even if it wasn't true, where did the imposter's uniform come from, and was he really connected to the truth?
Xuan Chong realized that the swindler was very arrogant before he was taken down, but he chickened out not because he was exposed, but because of his (Xuan Chong's) powerful backer, whom he couldn't afford to offend! If it had been replaced by another real officer without a backer, these local bullies might have "used a fake king to suppress a real duke" (King Cheng of Chu and Duke Xiang of Song).

Xuan Chong gritted his teeth, his teeth itching: In the area outside the Bohai Pass, all sorts of heroes, whether black, gray, or white, are likely to be like this!

Although he grew up in a sheltered environment, these past few years away from home have exposed him to the "spirit of the underworld." Xuan Chong has a rough idea of ​​what life is like at the grassroots level in his hometown.

Xuan Chong gritted his teeth and said, "They're nothing but bandits." Watching the patrol boat carrying that charlatan fake officer sail away, Xuan Chong really wanted to sink that boat with a pole.

Xuan Chong wrote in his notebook, "The bureaucratic style of local officials is too strong, the people lack a sense of justice, and there is too much of a chivalrous spirit—this is the difficulty in introducing an industrial economy in the future."

This practice of impersonating important figures to swindle and deceive, or of immediately impersonating them once a little power is gained (the leader of Tiger Mountain impersonating Commander Zhang after obtaining the advance map), is a common problem among peoples in high-latitude, frigid regions. Gogol's "The Government Inspector" also depicts this phenomenon, showing how, in serfdom societies, everyone engages in totemistic worship of "powerful figures."

Xuan Chong is extremely worried about this situation: he brings in investment from outside, only to be hindered by a group of "conservative princes and nobles of the Eight Banners," turning it into an inefficient Westernization Movement.

"Reform! We must reform!"

…After the ship docks…

Three days after returning home, Xuan Chong, following custom, visited the elders of each branch of the "Old Dongtu" clan, attended six banquets, toasted those who needed to, and swallowed fourteen cups of water disguised as wine. After completing the essential greetings to the elders, he reduced the formalities with those of his own age and clan. He began a "testing" approach to his close brothers. Through these conversations, Xuan Chong could discern whether these brothers were "negligent in their duties"—for example, those who were passionate about falconry had no time for anything else.

The elders asked questions with great enthusiasm, offering a lot of polite words and praising Liu Haoxing for having the prestige of their ancestors.

Xuan Chong silently vowed to himself, "We must reform."

However, on the surface, Xuan Chong was still a very polite and good boy, offering cigarettes to the elders in the family and calling each of the elders by their names according to their seniority.

Xuan Chong reaffirmed that the current local customs and culture of Dongtu are difficult to integrate with modern industries.

"Why don't we just overturn everything!" Another crazy idea popped into Xuan Chong's head. (A clap of thunder sounded outside the window.)
The current Han dynasty maintains the concept of "harmony between heaven and man" and has not been overturned and rebuilt for a very long time.

Furthermore, the Jiangnan and Xiabei regions are currently very well-suited for industrialization. They are on the right track!
However, this does not mean that for the "surrounding areas," the current Han theory remains an unchanging truth.

The stability of vassal states like Dongtu is currently maintained by the support of the current Han central government; frankly, without this support, it would have been completely overhauled long ago. (Similar to the Nordic countries of the past, which were actually supported by the West, with the aim of keeping an eye on Russia.)

Xuan Chong: It's not that wealth is unevenly distributed, but rather that the rewards for blood donations are unevenly distributed. Those who want to get things done have no voice and are tightly suppressed by the rules, while those who have a voice are happy to be "Manchu bannermen," clinging to ancestral laws and holding others back.

…A glimpse through a tube…

After finishing his social engagements as much as possible, Xuan Chong took a deep breath and went to his room. His companion, who had been with him throughout the engagements, came over.

Accompanying attendant: Your Highness, the Prince requests your presence.

Xuan Chong glanced at the young man, whose name was Chen Xihong. He was an outstanding student studying in the south, but in the family, he was his servant. It was said that when he (Liu Haoxing) was a child, he bullied him a lot.

Liu Haoxing patted the man on the shoulder: "Brother, you've had too many things to do at home. I'm sorry to have troubled you with these social engagements these past few days."

Chen Xihong's expression changed, then he asked, "Your Highness?"

Liu Haoxing said slowly, "I'm sorry for what I did to you before. My family's rules made things difficult for you."

Chen Xihong: "Young Master, what are you saying? The Prince sent me to invite you (he even began to suspect that Xuan Chong had set him up)."

Xuan Chong: "Oh, at my home you call me Prince; when we get to the ironworks, you just call me by my courtesy name, Xuan Chong. That's the courtesy name I gave myself."

Chen Xihong stared blankly at the young master of Dongtu; had the young master gone to the south and gotten a little out of his mind?

Xuan Chong invited him into the house: "Let's have a discussion at Longzhong. You've studied and worked in a factory before, so tell me about the current situation of the factory."

Chen Xihong listed a whole bunch of the factory's advantages, but when he saw Xuan Chong, he looked completely unconvinced.

Xuan Chong said, "I know without even guessing that the factory is just slacking off. You people who do the work will encounter all sorts of things that require 'discussion' or 'research'."

A hint of surprise flashed across Chen Xihong's face, clearly indicating, "How did you know?"

Xuan Chong: "Even the fact that you're following me now is because your original factory tasks have been delayed, but you have no choice but to continue!"

This is similar to a scene from a TV series Xuan Chong watched when he was young, where the paperhanger Li remained calm when he heard that the Beiyang Fleet was short of ammunition, but immediately stood up when he heard that the parrot he had given to the Empress Dowager had excrement of an unusual color! — Xuan Chong had already applied the situation of the Qing Dynasty to the situation of Dongtu, because the social conditions, geography, and culture were highly similar.

Chen Xihong's expression shifted slightly, but he remained silent.

Xuan Chong: "We want to reform, um, we want to change the system!" His hesitant words weren't out of hesitation, but rather because it sounded strange coming from someone who had already benefited from the system.

...prescribing medicine...

Chen Xihong left, and Xuan Chong watched him go, not expecting him to express his opinion. Besides, reform couldn't possibly be implemented from the top down; if the reform were truly decided within this very mansion, wouldn't he be the Guangxu Emperor?

Xuan Chong took a deep breath and took out the novel "The Fierce Soldier".

After the Battle of Liuhai, Xuan Chong discovered that the nib of his fountain pen seemed to have improved its rolling ability, and after opening the novel "The Fierce Soldier", he felt that he could "draw lines" again.

Xuan Chong complained to the system: "It couldn't before, but it worked after one battle. Does your system have some kind of hidden value called 'reputation points' that can summon heroes?"

The system did not respond, but Xuan Chong had already decided who to summon.

Su Ming, from Chapter 226 of "The Fierce Soldier," is the person who helps the protagonist in resisting Zhao Cheng's army in Zhenzhou.

In the room, after Xuan Chong traced the name with a pen, Su Ming's name disappeared from chapter 250 of the novel. Xuan Chong knew: "He will come!"

The person summoned by Xuan Chong at this time was adopted by his uncle's family with his mother when he was twelve years old, and began his path of taking the imperial examinations in a poor family. He was quick-witted; most importantly, the system prompted that this person had the talent for taking the imperial examinations.

…try…

The car drove into the factory, and then Xuan Chong stepped onto the marble building.

Xuan Chong met Liu Dang's formation.

Liu Dangzhen looked at Xuan Chong: "You gave yourself a courtesy name, 'Xuan Chong'?"

Xuan Chong: "Yes. I hope that I can lead the nation to great heights."

Liu Dangzhen: "I heard you want to implement reforms?"

Xuan Chong: "I have that idea."

Liu Dangzhen threw the book on the table: "Is the law so easily changed?"—His gaze was fixed on Xuan Chong.

Xuan Chong: "Of course it's not easy, but I have the will and the idea." "Moreover, (Xuan Chong smiled) I only told the people you sent, I didn't make a fuss."

Liu Dangzhen: "What are your thoughts?"

Xuan Chong: "The reform only needs to be known by you and a few others. It's like painting a dragon. When you first start painting, the outside world doesn't need to know. The painter only needs to keep it in his heart. The first step is to try to paint this 'scale and claw'."

Liu Dangzhen moved his hand slightly, and the door closed. Then, very seriously, he asked his son, "What do you think should be the first thing to draw?"

Xuan Chong: "I think the factory shantytown should be completely renovated. The first investment should not be used to purchase equipment, but to build a factory compound. This compound should include workers' dormitories, a workers' clinic, a workers' canteen, and a workers' kindergarten."

At this point, Xuan Chong slowly said, "The first step is that everyone here is young. The master-slave relationship should no longer exist here, and the rules of the old house must not be brought to the factory in the slightest."

Liu Dangzhen: "Are you saying I shouldn't be involved in this factory?"

Xuan Chong: "I'd like to ask my classmate from the south to take charge. As for Father, you shouldn't directly manage everyone in the factory. The factory should be governed by production rules. You can't overstep your bounds; you only need to keep an eye on those few people who are in the dark about factory discipline! (The factory manager, the foreman, the accountant.)"

Liu Dangzhen: "Can you recruit reliable classmates?"

Xuan Chong: "Let me take the imperial examination first, but Father, can our family treat these people the way Duke Xiao of Qin treated Shang Yang?"

(End of this chapter)