The spring breeze greens the south bank of the river again.

The boats were sailing on the Yangtze River, with blue waves. On both sides of the river were green. In the fields, farmers were rushing to plow the fields, with yellow oxen and buffaloes. The old ox was slowly carrying the plow, and the farmer was urging his whip behind to drive him away.

Behind, there were women and elderly people carrying baskets, carrying buckets, sprinkling manure into the fields, and sprinkling sludge. If the field yields high, you have to maintain fertilizer. This is a farming magic weapon that farmers know today. Each company fermented manure, and even had special fertilizer factories.

In those towns, even on the roadside, there were public toilets everywhere, and almost all of them were contracted by people. They were provided for free and even gave toilet paper for the purpose of the manure of grains and reincarnation. Collecting and processing became fertilizers that farmers rush to buy.

There are even bean cakes left with oil pressed, as well as the smelly fish, rotten shrimps, chickens, ducks, pigs, and cattle in the vegetable market that are removed from unnecessary water.

There are swamps everywhere in the countryside, and these pools are right between the fields, and they are planted with leaves, garbage, straw, etc., and the slag and sludge are extremely fertile.

If you apply enough fertilizer, then the output in one quarter will not be a problem compared to the past two or three, and you can even continue to produce.

"It's all old people and children, and there are fewer young people in the countryside." Li Shimin stood on the deck, looking at the fields on both sides of the straits with a thousand-mile mirror, sighing.

Zhang Chao stood aside, but with a smile.

"Your Majesty, this is a good thing. Thanks to the court's policy of expanding territory and immigrating border land over the years, the poor people in the Central Plains have gone out. People, if they are poor, they will change, and if they change, they will be open. Ten years ago, the Central Plains no longer have equal land and granted land, and they are allowed to merge. Although the people left their hometowns, they have a new life when they go to border land. Those who are willing to go to border land can not reach hundreds of acres of land. The border land is not valuable. As long as they can be reclaimed, the amount they reclaimed will be considered theirs."

A series of policies to encourage immigration by the imperial court allowed a large number of people in the Central Plains to leave the Central Plains and go to the four sides to settle down. In the past, the Central Plains were densely populated and many people had no land. Even though there was a wave of land at the beginning of the founding of the country, many families in many places did not have much land, and they were not enough food and clothing, so they were still tenants.

Now many people have left the Central Plains. At that time, the imperial court divided the last wave of land, and many people also had dozens of acres or even nearly 100 acres of land in their homes. Even if they were a family of six or seven, so many land was already very good, especially after the reform of the Two Tax Law, the burden on the people was greatly reduced.

With the promotion of new farming technologies, especially the continuous decline in prices of large livestock such as calves and horses, and the abundant supply, it has made it much easier for the people to plow the fields.

Nowadays, it is no longer rough farming, but intensive farming. Especially in addition to growing grain, we also have a variety of cash crops, such as mulberry or cotton, or soybeans, rapeseed, etc., which are close to cities and towns, and grow vegetables and breeding.

The lives of the people are indeed much better day by day.

But overall, the people rely on farming alone to maintain food and clothing, and it is still difficult to be rich. Fortunately, there are many opportunities now, and the people have become much more open-minded.

The young people at home left the countryside and walked into the town. They went to the city to work and earn cash. What they left at home were elderly grandparents, parents in charge, and young siblings.

Although it is hard to work in the city, it directly makes money. The people in the countryside work hard to cultivate various agricultural products. In addition to maintaining their own lives and selling them for money and paying taxes, there are not many left to be sold, and they also need to prevent famine in the year of disasters.

Especially now that the price of home products has always been low, this is naturally a good thing for urban people, but for those who farm, this is actually not good news. It means that the food harvested in a hard year is not exchanged for a few dollars.

Food and clothing are relieved, but they are useless.

Especially now, you have to buy fertilizer when farming, otherwise the yield will not be high, and relying solely on the little fertilizer you have is not enough.

People raise cattle, pigs, chickens, ducks, and sheep, and rely on various breeding to make some money to build houses for weddings and funerals.

"Your Majesty, the prices of agricultural products are indeed too low now. The imperial cabinet is also drafting a law that will set a protective price for agricultural products, raise the prices of some agricultural products such as grain, and benefit farmers. Otherwise, it would be too tiring to work hard all year round but not make a lot of money."

"In addition, the court is also encouraging the people to develop breeding and some family processing industries, and farming alone is not enough. Of course, we encourage young men and women in the countryside to go out and work in the city. Letting them go to the city to earn wages not only increases the income of farmers' families, but also solves the increasing labor demand for the current prosperous industry and commerce of the court."

Li Shimin put down the Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mile Mi

He sighed, "The lives of the people are now very different from those of more than ten years ago. They are really a god-like life. But if you compare them horizontally, you will find that the people are still at the bottom of society after working hard."

"Working in the city sounds good. You don't bask in the sun and make money while sitting in the house. But in fact, I also know that these people work very hard in the workshop, making money for those vampires day and night, and the few money they earn every month are also hard-earned money, and they are even often deducted by vampires."

Li Shimin didn't like those capitalists and thought that these people were vampires. In fact, many people now call those unscrupulous capitalists this way.

Zhang Chao admitted that what the Supreme Emperor said was also true.

With the rise of industry and commerce, the nature of merchants seeking profit will not change. In order to earn more profits, they try their best to squeeze costs. Material costs and labor costs are all desperately squeezed.

Try to make workers work more overtime, or even use excuses to deduct and fine it. It is quite difficult to make some money.

Those who are particularly unscrupulous are called vampires.

"New development is not only a new opportunity, but also new problems often break out. The court is in charge of the overall situation and macro-control. If we find problems, we will solve problems. In today's great development, there are certain problems. We cannot give up because of the choke, and of course we will not turn a blind eye."

Zhang Chao also realized those problems and was thinking of solutions.

"The Cabinet is currently discussing the issuance of a Labor Act, which is an amended version of the Labor Act of the past. All labor employers, including slaves, will be protected by this decree. For example, we will stipulate that workers and other employers must regularly check their bodies for free, and stipulate that all employees have a statutory working day of five days per week and a statutory working time of four hours. Overtime work is allowed, but processing outside the weekend must be paid at 1.5 times the average salary. If you work overtime on the weekend, you must pay twice the salary. And the total working time per day must not exceed seven hours, and the total working time per week must not exceed forty hours."

"Our bill will also stipulate the minimum hourly wage, the minimum monthly wage, the standard for compensation for work-related injuries, and the possibility of deductions and punishment of workers, etc. This is a law that protects the interests of today's increasingly large group of workers."

"After the law was introduced, all prefectures and counties in the Tang Dynasty must strictly abide by it, and the autonomous lords and vassals of the Tang Dynasty must also abide by this law."

In Zhang Chao's view, the country should protect vulnerable groups more. Because they are vulnerable groups, if the country does not protect them, there is really no one to protect them.

Zhang Chao did not want to see the workers' revolution just as the Tang Dynasty's industry and commerce were about to rise.

If you are too oppressed, you will definitely resist.

The court has great responsibility in this regard and must also assume this responsibility.

Li Shimin was slightly surprised.

"You said so nicely, but can you do it? Who are those capitalists? Are they the dignified men sitting in the House of Parliament?"

Zhang Chao smiled.

"The cabinet has this determination, and the court also has this determination. If someone does not know the current affairs and confronts the court, then the court will suppress it with an iron fist. Your Majesty will not doubt this."

Now, if you are not tough, then the court will not be tough even if it is tough.

In the cabinet, some people also mentioned to Zhang Chao that this labor bill is too much. The minimum hourly wage, monthly salary, and even limit overtime hours. Overtime work must be paid higher overtime pay, etc., and even stipulate that apprentices must have a minimum minimum salary, and stipulate the apprenticeship time limit, etc.

Slaves almost enjoyed the same protection as free-employed workers, but their salary standards were lower, and in other aspects were basically the same as free-employed workers. They were protected by law from being beaten, scolded, insulted, or raped, etc. After their children were born, they were free and good people of the Tang Dynasty, not slaves, nor the property of slave owners.

If a person has no future intentions, he will have immediate worries.

The prosperity of industry and commerce in the Tang Dynasty was replaced by a huge working class.

There are more than 15 million slaves in the Tang Dynasty, and this number is still increasing. There are countless conquered barbarians, as well as slaves transported from the Nanyang Islands and from Africa and Europe, one by one.

These people bought them for money.

But if you do not pay attention to such a huge class and always treat them as human beings, it is equivalent to laying one powder barrel after another under the cornerstone of the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty.

One day, this powder barrel will be blown up.

Why are slaves allowed to redeem themselves? Why are slaves paid? Why are they allowed to become free people at birth?

Because Zhang Chao wants to make this social class mobile.

Just as poor children can change their own and their family’s destiny by studying and participating in the imperial examinations. The identity of slaves is not unchanged. By working hard and earning salary, they can then be redeemed for freedom and become a free citizen.

Although in this society, people who become free people may not have real freedom, at least their heads are transparent and can rise.

The solidification of the class is the most terrifying.

Children from poor families can become officials when studying for imperial examinations. Ordinary officials can also become officials. Soldiers can become non-commissioned officers, and military academy students can become marshals.

All the people of the Tang Dynasty had the opportunity to make meritorious service and become nobles.

The class is not solidified, but it is not so active. Too active means unstable, and Zhang Chao is working hard to grasp this degree.

Slaves can become free people, but it may take half a lifetime or even a lifetime.

Everyone has hope to rise, but they all have to make great efforts.

The nobles were not completely solidified. Under the order of grace, they also wanted to be enfeoffed from generation to generation. After several generations, they became ordinary people. If they wanted to maintain their status, they also had to make contributions.

Li Shimin was moved.
Chapter completed!