The collective workshop + farmer model is absolutely unworkable.
Zhu Mo knew this in his heart, because it was all a sham, merely various Yan Shifan figures attacking ordinary people. If they truly acquired land, it wouldn't be used for sericulture but for grain cultivation; the only change would be the landowner.
Such a flimsy trick could not fool Zhu Mo.
On the other hand, the imperial farm - weaving system was also unworkable, as it was established by Emperor Taizu to support the imperial family, a way to show the world: the royals must also be self-sufficient, cultivating their own land. But this system was too outdated; although its framework was sound, it was not suitable for the present.
The only way forward was "absolute adherence to the law."
This included several points:
First, labor law must be strictly enforced. Anyone hiring workers must comply, and violators would face severe penalties. This way, whether it was the Directorate of Weaving's workshops, Xu Yang's workshops, or countless small workshops, all would be treated equally.
This was also unavoidable; the system had provided data indicating a severe shortage of labor in handicrafts. To ensure supply, rights must be guaranteed.
Another focus was land. He intended to enact a lasting law—
Land transferred for less than 30% of market price would be invalid and not registered by the government. Simultaneously, land enclosure would be strictly prohibited, with violators to be executed without delay. This idea had been brewing for a long time, but the circumstances were not yet ripe.
Furthermore,
it was the abolition of contract servitude discussed with Zhang Juzheng before his arrival.
In the Great Ming, contract servants were people with nothing. Regardless of the reason for losing their land, they were impoverished to the point of only having their bodies left. After signing a deed of sale, they lost all personal freedom and thus were not qualified to run workshops.
Zhang Gui, the leader of the Nanxun slave rebellion, was one such person. They wanted to work or run workshops, but their masters would not allow it. The release of these individuals was significant; the system indicated that there were 900,000 contract servants in the four southern provinces alone.
Another key point was the reform of imperial farms, which would also address the issue of land投献 (connivance/donation) households.
This was the most difficult matter and previously unimaginable. Zhang Juzheng was hated by the entire gentry for undertaking this task; after his death, his entire family suffered. The root cause was that after canceling 投献, taxes would have to be paid, and since the land already belonged to the gentry, how could they be made to pay taxes?
Now, the situation had changed. Agricultural taxes were no longer the main source of revenue and would gradually be reduced, eventually to zero. 投献 thus became an unprofitable activity. Middle-class families had no motivation to 投献 anymore. However, the gentry, considering this future prospect, did not intend to return the already 投献ed land.
This was the second reason for the Nanxun slave rebellion. It echoed the old saying: it's easy to invite a god, but hard to send one away! Once someone had taken refuge, wanting to withdraw was no longer up to them! It could be imagined that this matter was extremely difficult, requiring a large workforce and constant arrests by the Surveillance Bureau, otherwise the gentry would not comply.
Finally, there was a long-term hidden danger—
As the population shifted to handicrafts, farmland would inevitably lack labor. This would require a comprehensive plan to find a way to stabilize grain cultivation. At that time, perhaps the imperial farm model would be feasible?
After contemplating all night,
Zhu Mo the next day instructed Lü Kun to draft a strategy, which also served as a memorial, titled "A Memorial on Governing the Industries of Jiangnan by Absolute Adherence to the Law," concisely summarized as follows:
First, equalize the law for hired labor; any person hiring workers must have equal contracts. Violators will be fined ten taels of silver per person hired; coercion of hired labor will be punished by law.
Second, land sales below 30% of market price will result in the buyer being punished by law.
Third, contract servitude will be abolished uniformly in the four provinces; violators will be punished by law.
Fourth, all 投献ed land in the four provinces will be returned; violators will be punished by law.
Regarding the reform of imperial farms, he considered it and decided to postpone it for now. From all indications, the imperial farm had become a massive entanglement, containing all sorts of undesirable elements, and a single misstep could lead to grave consequences.
...
The next day,
in the main hall of the Ci Ren Shrine.
Zhang Juzheng and others, as well as Zhang Han and Liu Yingjie, had also arrived.
Now that Zheng Bichang and other Yan family cronies had all been dismissed, Jiangnan was under the control of the "pure stream" faction and Zhu Mo. Although there were still hidden dangers, both sides were in a period of cooperation, so the situation was not one to be pessimistic about.
Zhu Mo had Lü Kun read out the strategy and asked, "Gentlemen, the primary focus of the second reform in Jiangnan is these four points. I invite everyone to speak freely and discuss them?"
At this moment,
Zhang Juzheng was a first-rank Grand Tutor, Grand Scholar of the Grand Secretariat, and Minister of War, holding the highest official position. Next was Zhu Mo, Grand Scholar of the Wenyuan Pavilion and Imperial Supervisor, whose official position was lower but held the status of Imperial Envoy. Zhang Han was a second-rank Governor, and Liu Yingjie was a second-rank Surveillance Commissioner.
In comparison, Shen Shixing and Zhang Siwei did not feel any pressure. Moreover, with the wave of the official school slave rebellion, Zhang Juzheng and Zhu Mo had joined forces to stabilize the situation, and the two sides were in a honeymoon period. Therefore, although Zhang Juzheng did not give a signal, Shen Shixing spoke up and said,
"Grand Scholar Zhu, I believe these four points are all unworkable!"
Wow!
The atmosphere immediately froze, and even Zhang Juzheng coughed.
However, Shen Shixing remained unfazed, stating, "I believe they are unworkable for only one reason—absolute adherence to the law is the practice of Wei Yang, and it absolutely cannot be!"
He immediately brought up Qin law. Zhu Mo was not surprised, as few people truly understood Qin law. He did not necessarily know what was wrong with absolute adherence to the law, as they were all rigidly bound by Confucian texts.
Zhang Siwei then added,
"I also believe it is absolutely unworkable! Why? If hired labor is to have contracts, and violators are punished by law, then who would dare to hire workers in their workshops? I have recently been working with Minister Zhang on reforms and have seen that workshops of all sizes face difficulties, such as payment terms. They don't always have cash on hand, and sometimes delays of ten to twenty days are common. If they are punished for this, wouldn't it be too harsh? Furthermore, regarding the sale of land for workshops, many declining families have gone bankrupt due to improper conduct, gambling, and extravagance. If a workshop owner buys their land and hires them to work, what is wrong with that?"
After his speech, many people were nodding in agreement.
Li Zhi, listening, became increasingly displeased and abruptly interjected, "What about destroying embankments to flood fields? Is it wrong for those who buy land and hire labor after destroying embankments to flood fields?"
Hiss!
The entire hall fell silent.
Zhu Mo secretly praised: Well said, Li Zhuowu, coming in with a royal flush...
Cough, cough,
then Gui Youguang spoke,
"Regarding hired labor, I also believe it is unworkable. Why? You must know that many people are apprentices. As the saying goes, 'three years of apprenticeship are done for free.' If this is also considered hired labor, who would dare to take apprentices? You must know that Confucius's seventy-two disciples also did chores..."
Mmm, mmm,
Reasonable, reasonable...
Several people had already expressed their agreement.
Zhu Mo smiled and said,
"The Master spoke well... You have all spoken at length, and I shall also say something... I establish this law precisely to challenge the Sage Confucius!
Why? Absolute adherence to the law means bringing everything into the open. Apprentices are apprentices, and hired labor is hired labor. When Confucius taught, Zilu was an apprentice. When Confucius assigned tasks, Zilu acted as hired labor. What is wrong with that? What is inappropriate?"
One must know that Zhu Mo's greatest hatred in life was hidden rules, and Confucianism was the source of hidden rules, namely human sentiment blackmail and moral blackmail. For trivial matters, it was acceptable, but when it came to major issues, the world would inevitably enter a state of involution, and over time, this would lead to the current situation in the Great Ming.
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