1905: Beer Hall Speaker

Page 123

But when the Lunar New Year arrives, they try every means to go home, and these people bring money or goods with them.

Amidst a complex interplay of internal and external factors, the rural economy experienced a major boom at the end of this year.

The people of Plum Blossom Town couldn't understand the reason behind this; they only knew that the town was too lively this year, to the point that it was about to cause trouble.

At this time, the system of grassroots township governments, which the Republic had invested heavily in, began to play a role. In the previous dynasty, even if people were trampled to death in Meihua Town, as long as there was no rebellion, the higher-ups would not care at all.

But now at least there is a town government and a group of civil servants. Putting aside everything else, at least they can maintain order and handle some disputes.

"Old Ding, stop dawdling. Let's cut to the chase. If we can handle it, we will. If not, we'll put it off until the first month of the lunar calendar."

"Deputy Mayor, take some men to the dock market and keep an eye on things. There must be no chaos. Normal business and shopping are fine, but anyone who dares to cause trouble will be dealt with severely!"

"And fellow villagers, I know you are in a hurry, but please don't rush!"

Lin Jishun stood ramrod straight, his face resolute, and his voice booming; he was clearly a confident official.

The county allocated enough money at the end of this year, so the town's finances are ample. With money in their pockets, they have the courage to do anything.

Lin Jishun said, "The town government is now hiring ten temporary workers to temporarily make up for the shortage of government duty and security forces during the Spring Festival. They are paid 15 cents a day and meals are provided!"

"If any of you respected elders have anyone you can trust, please recommend them. We need people to help us stabilize the situation in the town."

Without hesitation, several old men who had been in the town for many years recommended ten people. They were all young descendants of their respective families. They were not necessarily literate or skilled in both literature and martial arts, but they were all capable young people.

Lin Jishun was very satisfied. He immediately had ten armbands sewn on the spot, stamped with the town government's official seal, and then ordered them to quickly join the team maintaining order.

Faced with the town being almost overcrowded, Lin Jishun had no intention of cutting off traffic or driving away the crowds. Instead, he immediately provided security and stability maintenance to ensure the town remained safe while prospering.

At the end-of-year county meeting, the higher authorities have already given instructions that the people's right to free movement, trade, and purchase must be guaranteed. This is a great opportunity for the province to boost its economic data at the end of the year, and no one can act recklessly or be inactive.

The funds allocated by the higher authorities at the end of the year are not given away for nothing; there must be a return on investment. The grassroots government system must play its role at critical moments.

After Lin Jishun organized forces to be deployed to the town's streets, the previously chaotic order began to stabilize. As soon as officials with insignia appeared, the people immediately became obedient.

All the civil servants who had been granted leave were called back to work overtime again. Lin Jishun paid them triple wages as per regulations, and everyone was happy to earn another sum before the new year, considering it a bonus.

Temporary workers only get 15 cents a day, so if they get triple pay, they'll get at least 80 cents a day!

The local elders even suggested that the younger generation who helped out should not be paid, and that Lin Jishun should be given priority in any good things that happen to him in the future.

The town government, being so large, will definitely need to hire more people to do the work in the future. Today I'm just a temporary worker, but as long as I don't make any mistakes, I'll have plenty of opportunities to become a permanent employee after working for another year or two.

The current national civil service exam standards are quite lenient because the pay is low and there is a shortage of personnel. After the pay is increased at the end of this year, the standards for next year's national civil service exam will definitely be stricter.

People in the countryside don't expect scholars to take the provincial or national civil service exams, but they're happy to have a government job right at their doorstep, even if it's just a temporary one.

"Mayor, I've got this sorted out. What's next?" Officer Ding brought three temporary workers with him, getting a taste of being an official in advance. With people under his command, Officer Ding seemed to have an air of authority about him.

"Go out into the streets and patrol for me, walk back and forth, make sure the people know that the government is always watching!"

"Yes, Mayor!"

After quickly and decisively handling the trivial matters at the inn, Lin Jishun dispatched everyone to the streets, while he himself remained in the inn's lobby to oversee operations and clean up the mess.

There are more people on the streets now than before, and even old farmers from the countryside are carrying their loads to town to sell their wares.

People returning to their hometowns continued to disembark at the dock, and merchants from other places also kept arriving. Some people felt that it was getting dark and didn't want to continue their journey, so they decided to stay in Meihua Town.

The only place to stay overnight in the town, Ping An Inn, was bustling with people. There were long queues at the counter for people wanting to order food and check into rooms, and all the tables in the lobby were full. The waiters were so busy that their heels barely touched the ground as they kept serving dishes and tea.

The innkeeper's eyes were squinting with laughter as he fiddled with his abacus while collecting money. Even his wife and daughter came to the front to help, and the rest of his relatives were helping out in the kitchen, cooking and preparing dishes.

But the boss was very perceptive and reserved a table for Lin Jishun, and even served him several plates of fruit, snacks and tea for free.

Lin Jishun watched as the vendors stretched their stalls from one end of the street to the other, and he was covered in sweat, constantly issuing orders.

The sudden surge of people during the Spring Festival caught everyone off guard. Lin Jishun had not expected that the people under his jurisdiction, who usually looked so poor they were practically spitting blood, would all be out shopping with money in their pockets today!

Rural people were very poor a few years ago because of taxes and corvée labor. The former would take away the last bit of grain and cash from the farmers, while the latter would drain the last bit of their labor.

Without money and free time, the rural economy will inevitably stagnate and lack any vitality.

But things are completely different now. Rural areas have earned some money in recent years through agriculture and labor export, and rural people are starting to spend more during the Spring Festival.

Even farmers who are truly broke can easily sell their eggs, chickens, ducks, cured meat, grains, or other local specialties in town.

Once farmers have money, their biggest consumption area is industrial products, which are the scarcest for them. The industrial products brought by merchants from all over the country to the docks and markets are the most popular.

Needles and thread, cloth, shoes and socks, clothing, lamps, kerosene, steel farm tools, pots and pans—no matter what it is, plenty of people will buy it because these are necessities of life.

In the past, farmers could only make do with various substitutes made using traditional methods. Now that they have encountered high-quality industrial products, they will pay for them no matter how reluctant they are.

The fact that the central leadership doesn't exploit the poor in rural areas doesn't mean they've completely ignored them. When it's time to start taking action, they won't hesitate to do so.

Right now, just as rural residents have a little surplus assets, massive amounts of industrial products are being dumped on their land and exploited.

The industrial price scissors will eventually take effect, and the government is using the gentlest means to extract value from rural areas.

These industrial products sold to the vast rural market are mainly light industrial products, and the sales method is retail. The government does not seem to participate in any link. The whole process is a closed loop consisting of manufacturers, middlemen and consumers.

But the government taxes all of this. These industrial consumer goods are taxed from the time they leave the factory to the time they are distributed to intermediaries. The price that consumers pay is actually the price including tax!

The biggest difference between the republican government and the Qing government is that the republican government prefers to collect profits during the circulation process, while the Qing government prefers to extract profits directly from the source.

Both appear to be acts of plundering, but the former is far more sophisticated than the latter.

Value is extracted during the circulation process, and everything happens voluntarily. The public fulfills their tax obligations without even realizing it, and it does not arouse resentment or resistance.

Moreover, the money in the hands of ordinary people and the goods produced by manufacturers further boost the market and economy during the market circulation process, creating more related tax revenue.

The Taiping Rebellion was such a brutal war that the Qing government could not withstand it by relying on fixed agricultural taxes and poll taxes. In the end, the main source of military expenditure was the revenue from local checkpoints and customs duties.

If internal taxes and customs duties during wartime could support a war as horrific as the Taiping Rebellion, one can only imagine how much benefit the republican government can reap in this period of peace and prosperity.

China has never been poor; on the contrary, it has always been very wealthy. However, the money and resources did not circulate effectively. The Qing government collected grain, silver, and various resources to do meaningless things.

Vast resources have been consumed by parasites, naturally leading to extreme suffering and a lack of vitality among the people.

In reality, China, which has not experienced warlord conflicts, exploitation by foreign powers, or the Japanese invasion, still has a very solid foundation, with a considerable amount of private wealth. It just lacks a strong stimulus from the government.

Although Zhao Yan waged war year after year after taking office, the battles never took place in the core economic zone. They were mainly fought abroad and in border areas, and the domestic economic zone was not affected much.

Chapter 206 Provincial Government's Direction

"Every city and county is in an uproar, there are just too many people!"

"Governor, the people are going crazy! Officials from all over the country are complaining that they've never seen anything like this before!"

In Changsha city, inside the provincial government building, officials in charge of the economy have been visiting the governor's office more often than going to the toilet these past two days. All provincial government officials have canceled their holidays and entered a holiday overtime state.

Sitting behind his desk, Zhang Xinghua looked at the documents urgently sent from all over the country, listening to the various complaints from officials. Instead of worry and impatience, his face was full of satisfaction and joy.

“Governor, this can’t go on like this. This Spring Festival surge has far exceeded the government’s ability to cope. If this continues, problems will inevitably arise sooner or later.”

"Yes, Governor, this can't go on like this with the people; we have to take action!"

Old-school officials were very averse to, and even wary of, the sudden influx of people during the Spring Festival. They did not think such prosperity was a good thing, and in their view, the large gathering of people was a very dangerous thing.

It's not that I'm worried about the safety of these ordinary people, but I'm worried that such a large crowd will cause trouble, affect stability, and also affect their official positions.

The typical mindset of old-school officials is "the people can be made to follow a path, but they cannot be made to understand it." The greatest contribution of ordinary people is to stay peacefully in their own little plot of land, honestly pay taxes and be good citizens, instead of running around all day and doing business everywhere!

Zhang Xinghua sat there, his face still bearing a calm and composed smile, maintaining the dignity of a powerful figure. He did not speak, but instead glanced at the other group of officials.

The person who was being looked at immediately spoke up: "President Wang, what do you mean by that? Manage? By what means, and on what grounds?"

"Ordinary people are neither breaking the law nor doing anything wrong. They are consuming, trading, contributing to the prosperity of the market, and making contributions to the national economy."

"What reason do we have to stop them? The Qing Dynasty is long gone. Don't use the swords of the Qing Dynasty to slaughter the people of our own dynasty!"

The person who spoke was Li Shiying, the director of the Personnel Department, and what he said was a bombshell, directly slapping the label of the Qing Dynasty on the other party's head.

The person who was retorted was Chairman Wang of the Provincial Local Committee, who also turned ashen-faced.

In contrast, Zhang Xinghua, sitting behind the main desk, remained silent, watching the personnel director's performance. As a provincial bigwig, and one who also held a key central position, Zhang Xinghua would not personally engage in a power struggle with these local officials; he would simply send a few subordinates to fight them.

At the crucial moment, the vice governor spoke up: "Director Li went too far. Everyone is speaking freely and discussing official business. Don't use the sword of the Qing Dynasty so casually. We are all colleagues here. Let's stick to the facts and not make sarcastic remarks!"

Vice Governor Peng Lide is the second-in-command of the province and the leader of the conservative faction of officials. He is at odds with Zhang Xinghua, a radical, and the two have political differences.

Chairman Wang is on his side, so what Chairman Wang said means his opinion.

Inside the office, Zhang Xinghua sits behind the main desk, while several bigwigs from the province's core circle sit in the armchairs on either side.

Sitting on Peng Lide's side were the chairman of the local committee, the mayor of Changsha, and the director of the education department, all of whom were members of Peng Lide's local faction.

Sitting opposite them were the Director of the Personnel Department, the Director of the Supervision Department, and a senior judge of the Provincial Court. The Director of the Personnel Department was not from the local Hunan faction; he was transferred from elsewhere and naturally aligned himself with Zhang Xinghua, who was parachuted in. The Director of the Supervision Department, on the other hand, was from the local faction but also sided with Zhang Xinghua, since Zhang Xinghua also held the position of Minister of Supervision of the Central Government!

The last person to close his eyes and rest was a provincial court judge. He didn't take sides and naturally remained neutral. He was just going through the motions at the meeting.

Vice Governor Peng Lide, facing Li Shiying, quickly dismissed the criticism and continued, "We used to call it the government, now we call it the government. No matter what we call it, we are still the local officials, and we still have to manage what we are supposed to manage."

"The crowd below is almost boiling over. If this continues, it will eventually exceed our ability to cope. The law does allow people to travel and trade freely."

"But everything must be done in moderation. Local areas cannot be allowed to descend into chaos. This is fundamental. I believe the central government certainly does not want to see chaos break out in the local areas either."

"Otherwise, if something really serious happens, who can bear the responsibility?"

Peng Lide understood Governor Zhang Xinghua's intentions perfectly. Facing Zhang Xinghua, who was a whole rank above him, he was somewhat apprehensive, but he had no choice but to step up.

The second-in-command is naturally meant to compete with the top leader. A vice governor who doesn't dare to challenge the top leader is seen by the central government as an official with no ambition or future prospects, and will probably be transferred to a sinecure the following year to retire.

The central government is watching closely. Each province has two regional governors, and only the governor and vice governor are at the ministerial level. These two must compete against each other; they cannot be a united front.

Although the governor has enormous power, he must be checked and balanced. No matter what, there has to be someone to challenge him, and even if he can't win, he has to hold on.

Although the vice governor is the second-in-command, he is still a high-ranking official in charge of a region. Even if he cannot defy the authority of the top leader, he must still have the necessary courage and backbone.

If a deputy governor in a region is reprimanded by the governor and treated like a watchdog, both of them will be removed by the central government under some pretext.

Within the bounds of reasonable rules, the unspoken political rule of the Republic is that the top leader and the second-in-command cannot be on the same side!

Even if Peng Lide didn't want to fight Zhang Xinghua, his superiors would force him to continue. Zhang Xinghua's backer was Zhao Yan, but Peng Lide was also recommended by Zhang Mingqi.

Everyone here has powerful connections; it's just that their own status is a bit lacking.

After Peng Lide spoke of taking responsibility, all the provincial leaders present fell silent.

The four criteria for evaluating officials at the central level are: education, agriculture, industry, and economy, but there is one fundamental principle that has not been mentioned: stability!

If unrest occurs in a locality, it will result in immediate disqualification, and key provincial government officials will be held accountable, with no hope of promotion and, in severe cases, demotion.

As the governor, Zhang Xinghua had no choice but to speak up: "Chaos is definitely unacceptable, but it can't be stopped."

Zhang Xinghua's opening remarks set the tone from the start. Despite his young age of only twenty-five, none of the people he followed under Zhao Yan were easy to deal with.

“Chairman Wang and Vice Governor Peng are not wrong, and their concerns are reasonable.”

Zhang Xinghua's second sentence eased the atmosphere considerably. Li Shiying addressed him as Chairman Wang, which sounded like something from a non-governmental organization. Using such a title in this setting was tantamount to directly insulting someone.

The local committee is the body that elects members of the province. The elected members are to enter the highest executive committee. The head of the local committee is only at the level of a department head. Calling him "Committee Member Wang" is definitely not an option, as that would be too much of an honor. But calling him "Chairman" is also not appropriate. The best title is "Chairman of the Committee," which distinguishes the members but does not excessively belittle them.

After Zhang Xinghua stabilized the situation in the meeting room with a few words, he glanced at the audit officials sitting by the door and said, "Please let the Audit Director talk about the data and tell everyone the relevant economic data."

"Yes, Governor!" The Auditor General took out the prepared documents and began his report.

From mid-January until now, in about half a month, the total amount of new local transaction tax, value-added tax and other commercial taxes collected in Hunan Province is more than 4.2 million yuan, and other types of tax revenue is also around 700,000 yuan.

This represents tens of millions of yuan in market transactions during this Spring Festival surge in the province, involving a wide variety of goods.

The Auditor General spoke for a full seven minutes before giving a general overview, which allowed everyone present to understand the changes brought about by the market boom.

After hearing this, the officials sitting in their armchairs in the inner circle couldn't help but show a hint of pride. These figures represented their achievements in governing the region.

Zhang Xinghua continued, looking up, "Could the Police Chief also report on the recent security data for each province?"

"Yes, Governor!"

The police chief was also sitting by the door; he was an official who could enter the doorway but not the main hall.

The police chief respectfully reported the data to the core group of bigwigs. Since the Spring Festival, the police department has counted 1,950 cases in the province. All of them that were reported and filed and reported to the provincial department were criminal cases.

The crimes mainly involve robbery, murder, human trafficking, fraud, and other offenses, many of which involve economic interests.

After hearing this, the officials frowned, especially the conservative ones, who believed in a world without lawsuits and ideally, no one would report them to the authorities or the police during their term of office.

In less than a month, nearly two thousand cases have emerged, and these are only those that have been reported and filed; there are probably many more that have not been filed.

The room fell silent; no one spoke first.

The central government now demands that we prioritize the development of the real economy, promote openness, and develop industry, which is similar to the reform and opening up policy implemented by Northeastern University in later years.

Moreover, the political environments faced by the two were similar. The University of Tokyo faced the dilemma of whether to follow capitalism or socialism, which was a purely logical dead end. In the end, the only option was to develop socialism with Chinese characteristics.

However, the republican government under Zhao Yan's rule also faced difficulties. The inertia of traditional dynastic thinking was no easier to overcome than socialist thinking. Even during the reform and opening up of Northeast China, at least it was based on a modern society.

However, Zhao Yan's new republican policies were implemented under the peak of the inertia of five thousand years of dynastic rule. No matter how bad the environment of the reform and opening up at Dongda University was, everyone agreed that change was necessary.