Chapter 8 Chapter 7 State Capitalism

The Su family brother Xining arrived in the capital in the second year (1069).Since that year, China has been involved in the waves of the New Deal, and political storms have arisen one after another, and the disaster has continued until the end of the Song Dynasty.This is not the first time China has experimented with state capitalism, but it will be the last.In China's 4,000-year history, totalitarianism, state capitalism, socialism, and violent social revolution have been tried four times, each of which ended in disastrous failure.The most successful was the Rightist totalitarianism of the Legalist Shang Yang, whose theories were effectively promoted by Qin Shihuang (third century BC), who built the Great Wall.The two most important principles of the early legalist theory were teaching warfare and emphasizing agriculture.The two are actually the same thing, because Shang Yang believes that farmers are the best soldiers, and all middle-class merchants and traders should be suppressed as much as possible.It is well known that the powerful military system developed on the basis of this dogma enabled the Qin State to unify the whole of China; but this political theory collapsed within a few years as soon as it became popular throughout the country.

Two other drastic reforms were promoted by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and Wang Mang respectively, in the second century BC and the first century AD.The former followed Sang Hongyang's state-capitalist fiscal theory, enriched the treasury, and succeeded in battles everywhere, but almost caused rebellion and was abolished; the latter was realized in the hands of the usurper Wang Mang, and it would naturally end when he was overthrown.Therefore, it is not surprising that Wang Anshi's fourth experiment failed.But all four of these New Deals were inspired by innovative thinkers who wanted to completely undo the past, and each carried out their convictions with great determination.It is interesting to say that Wang Anshi admired Shang Yang, a legalist, and wrote a poem to expound his thoughts.Another point to note is that no matter ancient or modern, Chinese or foreign, every totalitarian theory takes the interests of the country and the people as its slogan.It is not difficult for modern readers to understand how many political crimes were carried out in the name of "the people" in history.

Wang Anshi is a weirdo with a very special mind and character.He was a diligent student, a good scholar (but his linguistics was not clear at all), and a great poet.Unfortunately, he has a sense of mission as a savior, but he is not smooth enough to get along with anyone.He is also an unrealistic idealist.If idealists are people who don't care about clothing, food and appearance, then Wang Anshi deserves it.He was famous for his dirty clothes and unkempt appearance.In a beautiful article, Su Xun said that he "clothes the clothes of the ministers and eats the food of dogs and pigs", and said that he "talks about poetry and books while the head of the prison is mourning".I don't know whether Wang Anshi likes such a reputation, but it is not difficult to believe that a person who concentrates on his thoughts will naturally ignore his appearance.It is said that he never changed his robe.One day a few friends accompanied him to the bathhouse in the temple.While he was in the shower, friends secretly left a clean robe, to see if he would notice that it had been changed.Wang Anshi walked out of the bathroom wearing a new robe, completely unaware of his friend's actions.Anyway, he would have put on a robe.

Another day, friends told Wang Anshi's fat wife that her husband likes to eat shredded rabbit meat. "I don't believe it," his wife was taken aback. "He never paid attention to food. How could he suddenly like shredded rabbit meat? How could you have such an idea?" "Because he didn't touch other dishes on the dinner table, he ate up a plate of shredded rabbit meat." "Where is that plate of meat?" "Right in front of him." His wife understood, so she said to her friend, "I'll tell you. Put other dishes in front of him tomorrow and see what happens."

So the next day, my friends changed the location of the dishes, kept the shredded rabbit meat away from him, and watched him eat.Wang Anshi began to pick up the dishes in front of him, not knowing that there was rabbit meat on the table. It is also recorded that Wang Anshi served as the staff of the Yangzhou prefect and worked hard all night.At that time, Han Qi was the prefect, and later became the prime minister.Wang Anshi often drove the night train and dozed off in his chair until dawn.Often when I wake up and find it is too late, I rush into the yamen without combing or washing.Seeing his appearance, Han Qi thought he was indulging in women, and warned him.

"Young man," he said, "I advise you to use your youth to read more." Wang Anshi stood blankly without explaining, and told his friends that Han Qi didn't appreciate him.Later, when Wang Anshi's literary fame rose day by day, Han Qi changed his view on him and accepted him as a disciple. Wang Anshi was very angry.The year when Wang Anshi got a high position in the capital was also the time when Han Qi was dismissed as prime minister.Wang Anshi kept a diary diligently every day, filling 70 volumes. In his diary, he often said: "Han Qi is beautiful, but I have nothing to say."

But this weirdo is not just slovenly.In the twenty years before he came to power, the most commendable thing was that he repeatedly rejected the imperial court's promotion order.It's hard to believe that he was just playing for fame, because from the time he was a Jinshi at the age of 21 to when he was in power at the age of 46—that is, the 25 years when he was the most active in his prime—he repeatedly refused high positions, and he was always only willing to serve as the governor of other counties. petty officer.At that time, under Renzong's rule, all famous talents gathered in the capital.The more Wang Anshi refused high positions, the more famous he became.In the end, all the senior officials in Beijing were eager to see him.In addition to his excellent articles, he is also a capable administrative talent.He built dams, reformed schools, established farmers' loans, and implemented some of his New Deal ideas.He's done well, and everyone likes him.Others urged him to go to Beijing, but he ignored them.It was not until the fifth year of Jiayou (1060) that the imperial court appointed him as the judge of the third division, that he was interested in entering Beijing.Clearly he was interested in economics and finance, and felt that he could best serve the country in this area.Later, when his mother died, he had to resign from office to observe the funeral; but when the mourning period expired, the court called him to Beijing again, but he refused again, preferring to stay in Nanjing (it was called Jinling at the time, in Jiangning Mansion).

It is rather puzzling that he was content to be indifferent during this period, because he must have believed that when the time came he could do something great for the country, and that it would be most reasonable for a man in his prime to establish a political career.Maybe he couldn't stand the competition of the scholars of Jingshi University. Senior and famous scholars like Fan Zhongyan, Sima Guang, Ouyang Xiu, Zeng Gongliang and so on must not approve of drastic reforms. Their reputation is enough to discourage young people with novel ideas.Wang Anshi must wait for the opportunity.But I think there is also a psychological reason.A person with Wang Anshi's temperament will be the boss no matter where he goes, and serving as a prefect in an outer district is tantamount to being a big frog in a small pool.He worked in Beijing, and in a short period of time he repeatedly quarreled with his colleagues and messed things up.He wants to change the rules and deal with everything according to his own will.Wu Gui and Zhang Fangping both recalled that it was difficult for him to cooperate with others when they worked with him.

In the fifth year of Jiayou (1060), he came to the capital and was regarded as a great talent.His poetry and prose are well written.Innovative thinking and excellent eloquence.Veteran ministers such as Fu Bi and Wen Yanbo all value him, and even Ouyang Xiu likes him.This person's unique appearance hides a talent and character that everyone can't measure.Only a few people see through Wang Anshi's personality and think that he is a major crisis for the country. Su Xun and his old friend Zhang Fangping are one of them.The latter once supervised the provincial examination with him, fired him, and never said a word to him.He must have told Su Xun about his early experience working with Wang Anshi.Therefore, both of them hated Wang Anshi, and especially believed that his clothes and habits were hypocritical.Ouyang Xiu introduced Wang Anshi to Dongpo's father. Wang Anshi himself wanted to get acquainted with Sansu, but Lao Su didn't want to meet him.Wang Anshi's mother died, and Lao Su was also invited to be a guest, but Su Xun refused to attend the funeral, and wrote the famous "Discrimination of Traitors", which is still the most popular model essay in the school.

In this article, Su Xun first pointed out that it is difficult to understand people's personality, and often even smart people are deceived.Only a calm observer can see through a person's character and predict his future development.He cited an ancient scholar's prophecy to Wang Yan when he was young, and a general's criticism of Lu Qi, who had overthrown the Tang Dynasty.Lu Qi is a great strategist with a terrifyingly ugly appearance.If the master receives him, he must keep the singing and dancing girls away, so as not to frighten the girls or offend him by laughing uncontrollably.But Su Xun said that if the emperor at that time was not incompetent, these two people would not be enough to destroy an empire.But now there is a person who has Lu Qi's ugly appearance, talent and Wang Yan's eloquence. "Today there are some people who recite the words of Confucius and the old man, walk in the footsteps of barbarians, and recruit people with good reputations. Those who have no ambitions make up words with each other and make private names, thinking that Yan Yuan and Meng Ke are back. But the sinister thieves are vicious , different from others.” This kind of person can fool the wisest monarch, and once he gains power, he will be a great disaster to the country. "A husband never forgets to wash his face, and never forgets to wash his clothes. This is the true love of this man. It is not the case today. It is not the case that the clothes of the ministers and captives, the food of dogs and pigs, and the loss of the head of the prisoner talk about poetry and books. That’s right? Those who are unkind in everything are seldom big treacherous people.” Su Xun hoped that his predictions would not be accurate, and that he would be like a good general who scares the enemy away before fighting.But he said: "If I make the people of Sri Lanka not use it, my words will be exaggerated, and the people of Sri Lanka will sigh for not being met. Who would have known that this is the cause of the disaster. Otherwise, the world will be plagued by it, and I will know the name of words, and I will be sad." husband."

Whether Wang Anshi's strange habit is a disguise, we cannot tell; but if a person's behavior is too excessive, everyone will inevitably suspect that he has the meaning of self-promotion.If we believe Shao Bowen's records, Emperor Renzong also felt doubts.One day the emperor hosted a banquet for his ministers, and the guests had to fish from the pond to eat.Before the meal, the baits are placed on the dining table on a gold plate.Wang Anshi was not interested in fishing, so he ate the bait from the table and ate up the whole plate.The next day the emperor said to the prime minister: "Wang Anshi is a hypocrite. A person may swallow a bait by mistake, but no one will swallow the whole plate absent-mindedly." According to this record, Renzong didn't like Wang Anshi for this reason.In Wang Anshi's private diary, he was also particularly critical of Renzong. Looking at his later development, Su Xun unfortunately hit the mark.I don't know why, weirdos, fanatics, and schizophrenics all over the world believe that slovenliness is a sign of genius, and that refusing to dress like a gentleman is the best guarantee of immortality.Some people also have a weird idea that filth means not paying attention to the material environment, and therefore represents a higher spirituality. If this goes on, isn't heaven full of dirty and smelly angels. After the article was written, Su Dongpo said that both brothers felt that their father's accusations were too much.Only Zhang Fangping enthusiastically agreed.However, people in Su Dongpo's time immediately discovered that this prophecy was too true; this article has been handed down to this day, showing his father's peculiar insights. As soon as Wang Anshi took office in the Third Division, he immediately wanted to test his political foundation.At that time, Renzong was in power, and Wang Anshi presented a ten-thousand-word political statement.In this article, he clearly stated his principle of financial reform, "Generate the world's wealth with the power of the world, and take the world's wealth for the world's expenses."He said that since the Song Dynasty, the lack of political financial resources was all due to the lack of good fiscal and economic policies.No one came up with this policy only because there were no great men to face the problem.He said that those who were in power at that time were not good enough to take on great positions, and he believed that there were no other talented people in the country who were qualified to take on such positions.He clearly pointed out that if drastic reforms are to be made, the policies must be linked to the actions of Gu Shengjun, so that the people will not feel that there is too much difference from the past.However, he also said that to follow the traditions of the past is not to copy the measures of the ancient emperors, but to follow their intentions, that is, everything is for the sake of the people, and it does not matter how much the policy differs.In general, this is a well-written and well-structured treatise on political reform, covering every aspect of government, from finance to the civil service to even education. If Wang Anshi tried to test his own political base, he would find that he had no base at all.After Renzong read this long report, he put it aside.The next emperor, Yingzong, only reigned for four years. Wang Anshi was called once, but he resigned again.Historians often explain that Renzong had no children, and he had opposed making Yingzong his successor, so he was very disturbed. At this time, Yingzong's prince lived in the capital, and later succeeded him as Shenzong, and Wang Anshi gained power under him.When Shenzong was still the prince, Han Wei served as his secretary and admired Wang Anshi very much.Han Wei often expressed a certain political point of view. If the prince appreciated it, he would say, "This is not my own opinion, but Wang Anshi's idea." Therefore, the prince valued Wang Anshi very much and hoped that one day he could reuse his political talents.In the fourth year of Zhiping (1067), Yingzong died, and he ascended the throne at the age of twenty. He immediately appointed Wang Anshi as the prefect of Jiangning, and was promoted to Hanlin in September.Wang Anshi often communicates with his friends and believes that his opportunity has come.Contrary to his precedent, he immediately accepted the office.But he delayed his entry to Beijing for seven months. "Wang Anshi always refused official positions in the previous dynasties and refused to enter Beijing," Shenzong said. "Some people thought he was reckless, but now he can't come to the hospital. Is he really sick, or is he waiting for a better official position?" At this time, the two important ministers Zeng Gongliang and Han Qi were suspicious of each other.The latter served as prime minister and privy official under the three emperors, and his power was too great.Zeng Gongliang wanted to shake Han Qi's position, and hoped to make Wang Anshi his capable ally.He told the emperor that Wang Anshi had the talent of Wang Zuo, and His Majesty should trust him.On the contrary, Wu Gui, another senior official who had been in close contact with Wang Anshi, warned the emperor that if Wang Anshi gained power, he would surely plunge the whole country into chaos. In April of the first year of Xining (1068), Wang Anshi finally determined the emperor's attitude, so he came to the capital and made an exception to be allowed to speak "offside", without following the restrictions of etiquette. "What is the most important job of the government?" the emperor asked him. "Choose an appropriate policy," Wang Anshi replied. "What do you think of Tang Taizong?" the emperor mentioned the most beloved monarch of the Tang Dynasty. "Your Majesty should take Yao and Shun as examples, and not just learn from Tang Taizong. Yao and Shun's claims are actually very easy to realize. Because later generations of scholars do not understand them, they think that this standard is out of reach." (Yao and Shun are the ideal sages described by Confucius, ruled semi-legendary China in the 23rd to 22nd centuries BC.) The emperor expressed his satisfaction, but said modestly: "You expect too much from me. I'm afraid I won't be able to meet your high expectations." Later, the emperor retreated from the left and right sides and let Wang Anshi speak alone.This is a great opportunity for Wang Anshi. "Sit down," said the emperor, "I want to have a long talk with you." So the emperor began to ask him why Tang Taizong and Liu Bei asked two famous men to worship and govern the country.One of them is Zhuge Liang, the most famous and capable administrative talent in history.Wang Anshi brought the topic back to the legendary sage 3,000 years ago.Wang Anshi said that he would rather talk about the good ministers of Yao and Shun. "In the eyes of superior talents, Zhuge Liang is not worth mentioning at all." Zhuge Liang's political genius lies in moving towards the established goal step by step, and this eager and confident financial ghost finds it very distasteful. Wang Anshi continued: "Your Majesty is governing a large empire with a large population. It has been peaceful for a hundred years, and there are so many scholars in the country. Isn't it strange that no virtuous minister has come out to assist His Majesty? It must be that Your Majesty has no fixed policy and does not trust Talented. Although there are talented ministers who are as talented as Yao and Shun, they will be dismissed because of the obstruction of politicians and villains." "Every dynasty has villains and villains," said the emperor, "the time of Yao and Shun also had the famous Four Evils." "That's right," Wang Anshi said. "It is precisely because Yao and Shun knew the true colors of the four murderers and sentenced them to death that they could achieve such a high achievement. If the four murderers continued to conspire in the court to cause chaos, good ministers and virtuous officials would have left long ago." Shenzong was deeply moved.He was twenty and full of teenage ambitions to make the country strong and prosperous.He was kind and just, with a round, well-proportioned face, much like his ancestors.It was not until after Shenzong that the emperors of the Song Dynasty began to show the characteristics of physiological degeneration.His zeal was instigated by Wang Anshi's high expectations of him, and from then on the young emperor was ready to go through fire and water to realize his political views, even at the expense of other ministers.For some reason, whenever the old virtuous minister spoke out against Wang Anshi's new policy, the shadow of the "four evils" appeared in the emperor's heart. In the second year of Xining (1069), the Su brothers arrived in the capital, and Wang Anshi was appointed to participate in political affairs.In the following two years, veteran officials left Beijing one after another.The emperor's admonishers were liquidated and replaced by Wang Anshi's subordinates one by one.As soon as Wang Anshi took office, he immediately purged all government officials.Protests occurred again and again, and the entire official circle was in chaos.All the ministers of high ability and respect openly opposed him.The young emperor was puzzled, but Wang Anshi managed to make him feel that all the commotion was a fierce struggle between the emperor and the evil officials who committed crimes. "What's going on?" the emperor asked him, "Why are all the ministers, censors, and scholars in the imperial court united against the New Deal?" "You should understand," Wang Anshi said, "Your Majesty wants to follow the great teaching of the ancient sage, but to achieve the goal, you must first overcome the custom. Therefore, the struggle between your Majesty and the custom is inevitable. If they win, the government It fell into their hands, and if His Majesty wins, the political power will be in His hands. These selfish villains want to prevent His Majesty from fulfilling the great instructions of the ancient sage. That's why there is a lot of discussion." With the young emperor's ambition to strengthen and enrich the country, and an overconfident political and fiscal theorist to participate in politics, Wang Anshi's drastic reforms are about to begin.The motivation for these reforms cannot be disputed.In fact, after fifty years of division and struggle in the Song Dynasty, the government was still weak.Xixia, Khitan (later renamed Liao) and Jin continued to invade China's northern territory.China fought with them and often signed a humiliating truce afterwards.The items of the treaty are always the disadvantages of the Chinese emperor. These countries recognize the emperor, but they are not the ones who pay the tribute. It is our emperor who offers gold and silver, which costs 100,000 to 250,000 yuan a year.The treasury is empty.Internal affairs are lax, and the government often runs into deficit.Wang Anshi believed that he could play with the tax system and the military system to raise money for the treasury.I believe that Shenzong admired Wang Anshi mainly because he wanted to fight in the northwest, expand national power, and increase the prestige of the empire.As soon as Wang Anshi came to power, our side launched several wars against the northern barbarians. There were several victories and one disastrous defeat.In order to fight wars, the emperor needs financial resources; for financial resources, the country's financial system must be readjusted.We have no doubts about the motives of the reformers, but we shall find that these fiscal and economic reforms produced disastrous results of a quite different nature. Not long after Wang Anshi arrived in the capital, Sima Guang and him quarreled in front of the emperor. This time the argument seemed to sum up the basic differences between the two sides.At that time, the treasury was empty, and after the Spring Festival, the emperor wanted to save money for the royal family by waiving the minister's fees for money, silk and silk.Sima Guang and Wang Anshi had a heated argument about this.Wang Anshi insisted that the depletion of the treasury was the result of high officials not understanding finances. "What you call finance," retorted Sima Guang, "is just an increase in taxes and fees for the people." "No," Wang Anshi said, "a good official can increase the government's annual revenue without increasing taxes." "It's nonsense! The country's wealth is limited. Wealth is either in the hands of the people or in the hands of the government. No matter what strategy you implement or what name you use, it's just collecting people's wealth and handing it over to the government." The emperor and Sima Guang had the same opinion, so his measures were postponed for a month or two. Ordinary people are not economic experts, and only believe that the two major elements of national wealth are production and distribution.To increase the wealth of a country, it is necessary to increase production or distribute it well.However, in Wang Anshi's time, there was no industry, and it was impossible to increase production.So financial ghosts can only use their brains in terms of distribution.Wang Anshi's ambition is to enrich the national treasury. The so-called increase in national wealth is tantamount to increasing the government's annual income.Wang Anshi clearly saw that wealthy businessmen and landlords made a lot of money under the free enterprise system. He believed that the government could collect the profits of free enterprises and make money by running their own businesses.The conclusions are powerful.The terms he uses are also fresh.He wanted "money leveling"; he wanted equalization of wealth, "suppressing mergers and helping the poor"; he wanted to prevent farmers from borrowing usury from landlords.The government can lend money to farmers during the spring plowing period, and ask them to pay back the money after the harvest. This is a great measure for the convenience of the people.Wang Anshi told the emperor that these measures were to "enrich the people"; but according to historical records, he finally decided to lend money after hesitating for a long time, but it was because a small official said that the government invested 500,000 yuan and could earn 250,000 yuan a year. Because the harvest is twice a year, you can receive 20% or 30% interest twice a year. Various reforms began in the second year of Xining (1069). Eight years later, Wang Anshi and the emperor were very tired of the new policy, and they were not satisfied with each other. I will only touch on the outlines of these measures. There are nine of the most important and well-known ones, which I have grouped into three categories for convenience.There are three state-owned enterprise measures, three new taxes, and three registration systems to regulate people.The three measures for state-owned enterprises are: the equal transfer method, the market change method, and the young crop loan with 20% interest and 30% received (plus application and registration fees).The three new taxes are Exemption Tax, Commercial Tax and Income Tax.The registration system is to organize the people into groups of ten military training units (Baojia Law), and re-register land and horses (Fangtian Average Tax Law and Horse Bao Law).On the whole, these measures approximate modern collective economic policies. State-owned enterprises began in July of the second year of Xining (1069), and first set up national or inter-provincial wholesale institutions.The emperor believed that the government could reap great profits, so he set aside five million cash and three million shi of rice as capital to receive inter-provincial trade in goods and raw materials.Practical difficulties arose immediately with this system.In February of that year, the government first established the Department of Regulations and Regulations of the Three Divisions, which was responsible for researching plans and promulgating the regulations.Dongpo's younger brother, Ziyou, was also a member of the Department of Regulations.The above table shows that when the government takes over the national trade, free enterprise is immediately paralyzed, because the local wholesalers cannot compete with the government.It is inevitable that the government and businessmen will fight each other.And he denied that the treasury was profitable.Private business has an established credit system, but the government does not have these facilities. It is bound to hire personnel with high salaries and build a magnificent official residence.This kind of business will not be operated according to the relationship between supply and demand, but will be handled according to the amount of commission, and the distribution of benefits and contracts will be based on personal friendship.Ziyou said that due to the shortcomings of the bureaucratic system, the government cannot lower the purchase price, and the purchase cost must be higher than that of independent merchants.So losing money is inevitable. Therefore, the so-called equalization method was put on hold for a year, and it was considered in the long term; the government later proposed a revised plan with a new term.The division of wholesale and retail is not strict, so Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and other metropolises established Shiyiwu.In order to develop these trade institutions, the government allocated another one million coins from the treasury and 870,000 coins from the local currency of the capital.The reason for the establishment of these institutions is that "wealthy businessmen take advantage of public and private urgency to arbitrarily collect and disperse power." Labour, to reduce heavy collection, lenient peasants." They appointed a capable chief, the more profits he can report to the government, the more capable he is.This Lu Jiawen became the city official of the whole country and had the right to monopoly control over small merchants.For example, Jingshi City Yiwu stipulates that small traders must be members of the organization; they can combine the goods with the assets of the place for joint operation, or purchase the inventory sold by their shops with government funds; in case the merchant wants to close the business, he can put the Sell ​​the goods to the government; you can also use part of the goods as insurance to borrow money from the government, paying 10% interest for half a year, or 20% interest for a year; merchants who have nothing to do with this place can also sell their inventory to this place, and the price is determined by the government. Finally, no matter which department the royal goods are used by the agency. Government absorption of small businesses is the worst part of the system, and private commerce has almost completely ground to a halt.Over the past few years, trade and commerce have actually decreased day by day, and the government's annual revenue has been greatly affected, which is quite different from the theoretical high profits.The emperor was not happy to find himself reduced to a peddler of fruit, ice, charcoal, calendars, and straw mats in the eyes of the people.In the end, the scandal of Jingshi City's business affairs and commercial taxation reached the ears of the royal family, and the emperor ordered the termination of the most unpopular project in the reform. However, the most famous of the New Deals is the "Young Crop Law". Even today, when people talk about Wang Anshi's New Deal, they inevitably think of farmers' loans first.This measure affected every village in the country, and also contributed to the most violent political struggle between the ministers of the DPRK and China.The plan itself is sound and sound, reminiscent of Farmers Bank.Wang Anshi used to be a local official, and he gave loans to farmers during the spring plowing period, and got back the principal with interest when the harvest was harvested.He found that this was very helpful to the farmers, because he was an official in the local area, and he could confirm that the farmers were really in need before borrowing money, and he personally investigated everything.The local authorities in Shaanxi have also tried this method, and the results have been good. Because of the success of the trial in Shaanxi, farmers' loans are called "green crops" loans. In a good year, the government is sure that there will be a good harvest, so it will lend money to farmers to buy plow tools and wheat seeds;According to the regulations of the Sansi Division, "All the roads in Changping, Guanghuicang, Qiangu, and roughly 15 million guanshi can reach more than 15 million guanshi. It is not appropriate to gather and disperse, so it is not good. Now I want to use it now. Dendrobium bucket, if the quantity is expensive, the market price will be reduced, and if the quantity is cheap, the market price will be increased. It can be accommodated by transshipment of Si Miao tax and money Dendrobium, and those who transfer it can also be exchanged. It is still in cash. According to the Shaanxi Qingmiao Qian case, the person who borrows in advance Give it. With the tax, you will pay the dendrobium bucket, half of which is summer material, and half is autumn material. If you want to pay for your true color or the current price is expensive, you can do it according to your convenience. In case of disaster or injury, Xu Zhan until the next material is abundant It is not only enough to wait for the disaster of famine. Since the people receive loans, the annexed family cannot take advantage of the new ones and refuse to accept them, so as to double the interest. Also, the things that are often flat and wide-benefited, the collection is stagnant, and they must wait for the year to be frugal and expensive. , and then go out to buy, and those who can reach are no more than the city's idlers. Today, if there is no road, it is expensive to collect money, so as to save money and level prices, so that farmers have the opportunity to go to the current situation, and mergers can not be taken advantage of. Everything is for the people, and the government does not benefit its people, which is also the meaning of the former king's spreading benefits and promoting profits, thinking that farming and subsidizing." This beautiful and naive plan has destroyed the lives of many farmers, as we will see later.However, I would like to explain that this new measure is a continuation of the old method of Changping warehouse, which gradually replaced Changping warehouse.In the early years of the Song Dynasty, the government set up granaries in various places to stabilize grain prices.In good years, "cheap rice hurts farmers", and the government tries to buy the remaining rice and wheat.When grain prices rise in famine years, the government throws stored grain into the market to drive down prices.Many officials are unwilling to buy all the surplus grain at a low price, so the efficiency cannot reach the peak.However, judging from the figures released by Chang Pingcang in the third year of Zhiping (1066), they purchased 5,014,180 tans of grain within a year and sold 4,711,570 Ten loads.Now all the goods in the warehouse have been turned into the principal of the young crop loan, and the normal operation of the permanent warehouse has naturally stopped. The crux of the matter is that loans are inevitably coerced.Wang Anshi tolerated no opposition and must succeed.He had to prove to the emperor that loans were a great virtue and welcomed by the people.He didn't want his subordinates to slacken their money.He doesn't understand why farmers don't want loans.If the loans did not meet the quota, he lost his temper.He began to promote officials with better grades and punish those with poor loans. Every official paid attention to his own future and wanted to keep good achievements.The inducement of personnel competition is much like the promotion of government bonds now.Officials knew that if they did not sell enough quota, they would be dismissed and demoted for "obstructing the New Deal". Wang Anshi's so-called "progressive" good officials would inevitably have to rely on power to spread loans.Every family has to borrow money from the government, and every three months they have to pay 30% of the interest.Good officials know that these loans are not good for the people, and if they are sure that they cannot pay the principal and interest, they will go to jail.They obeyed the government's express regulations, declared that the loan was completely "voluntary", and planned in their hearts that one day they would lose their positions for "obstructing the New Deal". The same is true for the immunity law. The official intention and actual implementation are completely different things.This may be Wang Anshi's best new policy. In the future, Su Dongpo's followers will gain power and are determined to eliminate all Wang Anshi's new laws. Only Su Dongpo will support this policy vigorously. China has practiced conscription for a long time.The new law requires people to pay taxes in lieu of military service.In other words, recruiting instead of conscription.However, when we carefully study the regulations of the Exemption Law, we find that the government’s main interest lies in taxation. The benefits of people’s exemption from military service are completely offset by the Baojia Law. The Baojia Law forces military service, which is worse than conscription.After more than a year of research, the Immunization Law was announced.People who do not need to be drafted must also pay exemption tax; for example, widows, families with no children or only children, families with children who have not grown up, nuns, and monks all have to pay another tax called "service allowance".In addition to the exemption quota, each district has to pay 20% more, in case the people in the famine year cannot pay.Both military and government employees are recruited from this tax.Ziyou once pointed out that farmers who failed to pay their debts would be thrown into prison and whipped.Sima Guang also predicted that the people of Xia and Autumn had no cash to pay taxes—other taxes would also come at the same time—and had to sell grain, kill cattle and cut trees for money.In the past, people were recruited to serve in the military for several years in turns. Now people have to pay exemption tax every year, and the year they don't have to serve is not missed. Exemption tax, new business tax, and income tax can be said to be new methods of tax collection, not the real release of military service for the people, because they still have to receive military training under the new name of the "Baojia Law".Excise duty is levied on the profits of merchants and is based on books of account.The meaning of income tax is different from modern times.I call it income tax because the authorities compulsorily register people's income and property to be used as evidence for other taxes.Another point is very similar to today's income tax. People must declare their income and property, and work hard to deceive the government.In the controversy over the new law, some people pointed out that "therefore, every inch of the land of the people's houses was exhausted, and even chickens and pigs were copied everywhere" were all registered by the government.The last measure was enacted in the seventh year of Xining (1074), and its lifespan was extremely short, because Wang Anshi soon lost power, and this law had not been abolished, so Su Dongpo refused to implement it in his own area, saying that it was illegal. Wang Anshi collected the exemption tax to relieve the people of the burden of military service, but the Baojia Law exposed his lies.The facts are obvious. Both the new "Baojia Law" and the tax exemption were promulgated in December of the third year of Xining (1070). The government canceled the military service burden of the people on the one hand and asked them to pay the "exemption" tax on the other hand. on the people. "Baojia" is a neighbor's insurance system.Ten households are one "guarantee", and fifty households are one "big guarantee".In case someone harbors criminals and thieves, the people in the "bao" shall bear joint and several liabilities; in case of felony murder or rape, they must report to the government.Every strong man in the "Da Bao" must form a team to receive military training, and one out of two men will be drawn, and more men will be drawn proportionally if there are more than two men.These people have to abandon the fields every five days for one day of training. In ancient times, five days equaled one week, which just divided a month into six periods.Conscription sent men out of town, but the new law brought troops into villages.However, Wang Anshi was a great propagandist; he knew that when a new name was established, new gadgets were produced, and "military service was stopped." In addition to the centralized registration and management of the people, there are also the Fangtian Average Tax Law and the Horse Protection Law.Wang Anshi's new law, like all collective systems, will never spare the people.Governments are bent on taking care of people, and they must know exactly what they do and what they have.Just like all totalitarian systems, they cannot rule without secret police, so the secret police were established in the fifth year of Xining (1072). Fortunately, Su Dongpo had left the capital at that time.If the government does not control Yushitai (equivalent to today's newspapers and magazines), it will not be able to manage affairs if it is replaced by subordinates of the same line.Wang Anshi believes that it is even more necessary to control the thoughts of literati.Like Wang Mang in ancient times and Hitler in modern times, he has the belief of "one country, one belief, one leader".Like Hitler, he threw a fit of rage against opposition; modern psychiatrists could rank him as paranoid. It was not his style of political and social reform that showed his "paranoid character" that all historians and critics recognized as unforgivable, but that he regarded himself as the only commentator of scriptures.In the past, Wang Mang tampered with ancient books, but now Wang Anshi has written "New Meanings of the Three Classics" and made it an official guide to thinking, replacing all the great classics theorists in the past.Wang Anshi's knowledge is good, but it is not enough to replace Zheng Xuan, Ma Rong, Lu Deming and other ancient great Confucians.This is not only an abuse of authority, but also a slander of academics.Examination papers usually quote ancient texts, and candidates and explanations must be unified.He set this new standard. All domestic scholars must study Wang Anshi's opinions in every aspect, from political principles, Confucianism with a strong Buddhist color to the etymology of "quail", "owl", and "pheasant". foot.After Su Dongpo left Beijing, he once invigilated the provincial examination. He once wrote a poem saying that he was very distressed by the unity and poverty of the candidates' thinking. Wang Anshi's "New Meanings of the Three Classics" is full of Buddhist flavors. Like his linguistics, it is highly creative, but its academic foundation is not solid.Yet he was convinced that his analysis of ancient thought and political institutions was entirely correct. The "Three Classics and New Meanings" are extremely poor. After his death, he was left behind, and none of them survived.But when he was in power, it was the bible for examiners; if he didn't agree with the prime minister's interpretation, he would lose his name.他只花两年完成《三经新义》，尤其是对学术的一大侮辱；这本书在熙宁六年（1073年）三月开始动笔，由他的儿子和一位小政客帮忙，熙宁八年（1075年）六月就出版了。仓促的作品被定为儒经正统的注释，王安石意见一变，新的版本马上问世，考生都知道他们的一生要看自己能不能跟上修订本而定。 这里不谈王安石的学问，苏东坡对此十分痛心，因为他学问比王安石强多了。不过我要提一下，王安石的《字说》非常滑稽，和所有半吊子的语源学差不多。除了《三经新义》，当时学者最气的就是王安石所创的语源讨论。他的《字说》研究国字的构造和起源，不用比较法，却凭幻想的活用。王安石相信这是他对学术最创新、最持久的贡献，晚年还继续研究，完成了二十五卷。西方学者不难明白，学者若运用想象力，不受科学方法——汉代和清代学者所用的方法就是一例——的约束，要完成二十五卷语源学实在太容易了。“幻想语言学”一天可以编出十几道奇谈来。由中国字的结构找出各种成分组成某一意义的原因，实在很容易也很好玩。王安石有五十多条字说留传下来，大部分成为茶余饭后的趣闻。苏东坡和王安石的许多笑话都和这些《字说》有关。 苏东坡喜欢用归谬法。中文有一个“鸠”字，由“九”和“鸟”两部分所构成，读音如“纠”。王安石一心想由字意找出有趣的理论，竟推翻了字音的成份。有一天苏东坡和王安石闲聊，忽然问他：“对了，'鸠'字为什么由'九'和'鸟'所构成？”王安石答不出来。苏东坡取笑他说：“我告诉你，诗经说：鸬鸠在桑，其子七兮。七只小鸟加上父母两个，不就是九个吗？” “波”字是由“水”字和象声的“皮”字所构成。王安石想象力丰富，说“波为水之皮”。所以这样写法。有一天苏东坡遇到他，就诙谐地说：“那么'滑'字一定是'水之骨'罗。”王安石违犯了中国字组成的基本原则。他残害“字根”，把它分裂为二，再误接另一个部首——“富”字就是一例——真会使任何语言学家大哭一场。 后来，有些中国学者遵循西方集产主义的观念，想洗刷王安石在历史上的罪名，说他的思想“符合现代社会主义”。近代大学者梁启超就为王安石辩护。王安石的社会主义思想有人赞成，有人反对，但是王安石的社会主义政权却要由结果来判断。事实上国家消除了私人垄断，却建立了自己的独占制度；小商人失业了，农民付不出强迫贷款的本金和利息，只好卖妻卖子或全家逃亡，不然就典当财物。监狱常满，每一郡县都有数千件查封的抵押品和没收的财产，官厅诉讼不绝。就算没有异族侵略，暴政也会把国家拖垮。熙宁七年（1074年）圣诏说，商业停顿，人民失业；熙宁九年（1076年）圣诏下令废除青苗法，声言很多人无法还债而坐牢挨打。二十年后，哲宗元祐五年（1090年）六月苏东坡上了一道书表，想解救乡村的经济危机，要求政府归还没收的私产，取消穷人的债务，文中说： 头几年王安石还瞒住皇上，不让他知道恐怖的情景，自称百姓支持他的土地政策，将极权政府说成“民主”国——名称混淆，倒令人想起近代的情景。无论古今中外，人民爱不爱某一政权唯有等这个专制政府失势才能判断。皇帝想知道民情，就派人出去查访。但是宦官和御史知道皇帝喜欢新政，就告诉皇帝，人民都爱新法，税吏一出，人民“欢呼感德”，由特意安排的接待仪式看来，这些话倒是真的。王安石变法几年后的恐怖情景终于由一位勇敢的皇宫门吏以图画方式，呈现在皇帝眼前。 郑侠终日站在官门边，看到成群难民由东北逃来，挤满京师的街道。郑侠知道图画比言辞更有力，就把这些可怜的农民画下来，献给皇上。有一张画描写难民饥寒交迫，在大风雨中流浪。另一张描写半裸的男女正在吃草根树皮，还有人拴着铁链搬砖负柴来缴税。皇帝看到这些图面，不禁掉下泪来，精采的献图——我们以后会谈到——加上一颗彗星出现。圣山发生土崩，皇帝终于废除了许多“新法”。