If this were a comic, then after Jiang Xinlong uttered the eight characters, "Each contributing their utmost, distribution according to need," various scenes of lightning and thunder would have appeared on the screen to show respect for these eight characters.
Of course, reality is not a comic or a novel; there was no lightning or thunder, nor any celestial phenomena.
However, Adolf was still shocked by these eight characters, "Each contributing their utmost, distribution according to need"—in Adolf's opinion, let alone distribution according to need, even if it were just distribution according to work, his hands would not have developed sequelae from constantly fluffing cotton for the masters of Yi Ci Le Ye, and he himself should have become a wealthy man long ago.
After Jiang Xinlong explained the system of "Each contributing their utmost, distribution according to need" in general terms, Adolf trembled slightly.
He was completely captivated by the beautiful vision painted by Jiang Xinlong!
Jiang Xinlong smiled and patted Adolf on the shoulder, "How about it, have you learned anything?"
Adolf nodded solemnly and replied earnestly, "Thank you, teacher, I think I have found the future path for Austria!"
Jiang Xinlong smiled with relief and nodded, saying, "That's good. Learning something makes the trip to Da Ming worthwhile."
"Remember, the doctrine of free competition cannot save Austria; only the theory of distribution according to need can save Austria."
"However, this theory has only just been formulated, and you still have a long way to go to save Austria using this theory."
"At the very least, you need to find some like-minded helpers."
"Just as His Majesty the Emperor of Da Ming said, let us make more friends and fewer enemies."
Adolf immediately nodded solemnly, "Yes, teacher, I will remember what you have taught me."
Jiang Xinlong smiled and nodded, then suddenly decided to add some more material for Adolf.
Jiang Xinlong said slowly, "More than 150 years ago, Da Ming had an emperor whose reign title was Chongzhen, so historical records generally refer to him as Emperor Chongzhen."
"According to historical records, Emperor Chongzhen was a diligent and conscientious good emperor. Upon his ascension, he abolished the notorious Chang Wei of Da Ming—that is, the Eastern Depot and the Imperial Guards of Da Ming."
Adolf suddenly interjected, "Eastern Depot? Imperial Guards? As far as I know, these two institutions still exist?"
Jiang Xinlong nodded and said, "Indeed, they still exist."
"As the saying goes, a centipede is not dead until it is rotten—although Emperor Chongzhen abolished most of the powers of the Chang Wei, the Eastern Depot and the Imperial Guards were not completely disbanded; the basic structure remained."
"After Emperor Chongzhen's demise, the Eastern Depot and the Imperial Guards were determined to restore the kingdom and were constantly trying to counter the Qing and restore the Ming. The Imperial Guards supported the Tiandihui founded by the Prince of Yanping, and the Eastern Depot even infiltrated the imperial palace of the Jian Yi."
Adolf could not help but praise, "They are all respectable people!"
Jiang Xinlong nodded, then looked at Adolf intently and asked, "Then, do you know why Emperor Chongzhen abolished the Chang Wei back then?"
Adolf was stunned and asked foolishly, "Why?"
Jiang Xinlong said, "Because, at that time, the Imperial Guards and the Eastern Depot were responsible for overseeing the empire, including civil and military officials. They could investigate any suspected targets, and even arrest and interrogate people without going through the government. They were only accountable to the Emperor of Da Ming and did not need to heed any officials."
"Therefore, their reputation was very bad, so bad that it could stop children from crying at night."
"I think you know why this is the case, don't you?"
Adolf nodded and said, "I think it's because they touched too many people's interests and offended too many people?"
Jiang Xinlong hummed and said, "That's right, it's for this reason."
"After abolishing the Chang Wei, Emperor Chongzhen lost his eyes for overseeing the empire and also lost his sharpest knife—the Imperial Guards and the Eastern Depot were both the emperor's eyes for overseeing the empire and his sharpest knives!"
"This is why the current emperor re-established the Chang Wei."
"And you should know some of the results."
"When the current emperor first raised his army, he was able to quickly obtain the movements of the Jian Yi army, and even know what military plans the Jian Yi barbarian chiefs and generals had."
"It can be said without exaggeration that if His Majesty the Emperor wanted to know what we said today, he would get the results tonight."
"Even if His Majesty the Emperor wanted to know what Louis XVI ate for dinner last night, the spies of the Imperial Guards would quickly find out the results."
Adolf was dumbfounded, while Jiang Xinlong continued, "If you want to implement the system of distribution according to need in Austria, many people will want to target you."
...
After seeing off Adolf, Jiang Xinlong soon met a student from France: "Little Dai, you've been studying very diligently lately. I believe your achievements will surpass Napoleon's in the near future."
The student from France, called Little Dai, showed a simple and honest smile on his face, "Thank you for your praise, teacher. I still have a lot to learn. I wonder if you have anything you want to instruct me to do?"
Jiang Xinlong smiled and shook his head, gestured for Little Dai to sit down, and said, "I've asked you here today because I've heard a few relatively new theories, and these theories happen to be related to your Europe, so I wanted to discuss them with you."
Hearing this, Little Dai said solemnly, "Please tell me, teacher!"
Jiang Xinlong said: A few days ago, some bigwigs in our Da Ming court were discussing governance and classified and summarized the systems on the small broken ball... Didn't your France previously use this system?"
Little Dai nodded and replied, "Yes, France previously used the system of free competition, but no one summarized it into a complete theory like you, teacher."
Speaking of this, Little Dai showed a hesitant expression, "It seems that this theory has great flaws—at least, judging by the comparison of the strength of the countries in Europe with the strength of the Da Ming Empire, I believe this theory is absolutely inferior to the system currently used by the Da Ming Empire."
Jiang Xinlong chuckled and said, "There is an old saying in our Central Plains hall: Oranges grown south of the Huai River are oranges, but those grown north of the Huai River are trifoliate oranges."
"The same oranges, when grown south of the Huai River, become sweet oranges, while those grown north of the Huai River become bitter trifoliate oranges. What causes this?"
Before Little Dai could figure out the reason, Jiang Xinlong answered his own question, "It is because the soil and water in the south and north of the Huai River are different. Therefore, even for the same orange tree, those grown in the south will be different from those grown in the north."
"Similarly, although Da Ming's system is very good, can you guarantee that this system is applicable to your France?"
Jiang Xinlong's words made Little Dai pause.
As one of the students sent to Da Ming by France, and as the unspoken leader of this batch of French students, Little Dai was quite intelligent.
Moreover, having been in Da Ming for over three years, Little Dai's perspective had also greatly broadened; he was no longer the frog in the well he once was in Europe.
More importantly, being of noble birth, Little Dai always managed to get the latest French newspapers and also receive the latest news from Pierre that others could not.
Therefore, Little Dai knew very well the consequences of Louis XVI directly copying Da Ming's system—many French nobles were very dissatisfied, and the French commoners also seemed very unwilling to accept it.
After all, many clauses in Da Ming's laws involved collective punishment of entire clans, and what the nobles of France, or Europe, least wished to see were such clauses.
If it weren't for Napoleon leading the new army to fight battles east and west, earning great fame for Louis XVI, coupled with Da Ming Empire's power, the French nobles would have long ago united to cause trouble for Louis XVI.
Thinking of this, Little Dai tentatively asked, "What do you mean, teacher?"
Jiang Xinlong smiled and said, "The wise men of our Central Plains hall once said: Teach according to aptitude, and adapt to local conditions."
"This means that one should use different methods to educate different people, and for different problems in different places, there should be different solutions. One cannot rigidly adhere to a fixed plan without any changes."
Little Dai suddenly felt enlightened.
What the teacher said was right. No matter how good Da Ming's system was, it was only applicable to Da Ming. It was not entirely impossible to apply it to France, but it needed to be changed first. It should not be a direct copy and paste like Louis XVI.
Jiang Xinlong continued, "According to the information I have about France and Europe, the most suitable system for your France is not the one currently used by Da Ming, but the system of free competition."
"Of course, this is not to say that you are absolutely suited to the system of free competition. After all, the system of free competition also has many flaws. If it is not modified, the system of free competition might be worse than the system currently used by Da Ming."
Hearing this, Little Dai humbly asked Jiang Xinlong for advice, "May I ask, sir, in what areas do you think it should be modified?"
Jiang Xinlong chuckled and said, "You shouldn't ask me this question; you should ask yourself, or rather, you should ask France. No matter what the system is, it is ultimately France that uses it, and it is the commoners and people of France who are affected by this system. If you don't ask them, why ask me?"
Little Dai could not help but sigh, "Teacher, what you say is correct, but who should I ask?"
Jiang Xinlong smiled and said, "If you hope for France to become stronger, then you should ask Louis XVI and Napoleon, because everything they are doing now is also with the hope of making France stronger and allowing your French commoners to live better lives."
Little Dai nodded seriously, then suddenly had an epiphany and asked, "Then, can you tell me, teacher, when the bigwigs of the Da Ming Empire discussed the system of free competition, did they mention the flaws of this system?"
Jiang Xinlong pointed at Little Dai and smiled, "You, you are a real sly one compared to Napoleon!"
After saying that, Jiang Xinlong deliberately sighed and said, "Alright, since you've asked, I'll tell you about it in general."
"Our Da Ming Minister of Revenue, Liu Huaiwen, once said that this system looks very good, and if truly implemented, it would definitely yield some results. However, the biggest problem with this system is the excessive strengthening of private rights."
"More than 150 years ago, Da Ming had an emperor... Emperor Chongzhen. At that time, he excessively focused on private rights, leading many wealthy merchants and businessmen to find ways to evade taxes—without taxes, how could the state support the army? How could it repel enemy attacks?"
Little Dai nodded and said, "Yes, evading taxes is wrong. France did indeed have this situation before, otherwise, France's treasury would not have become so empty. And it is precisely because of this that His Majesty Louis XVI copied Da Ming's system."
Jiang Xinlong smiled and shook his head, saying, "There is an old saying in our Central Plains hall: To abandon the ladle because of choking, which describes the current situation in your France."
"The system that was in use was suddenly abolished, and a complete shift to another system that is fundamentally unsuitable for France. Will the French commoners and nobles easily accept it? Will this bring turmoil to France?"
"Therefore, the correct approach should be to mend the existing system, make modifications little by little, and make the original system more complete, rather than completely overthrowing it and starting anew."
"For example, while emphasizing private rights, strengthen public power and find ways to plug loopholes that allow people to evade taxes. Wouldn't this solve the tax issue?"
"For example, even if the original system is completely unusable and a new system must be adopted, shouldn't a place with less impact be chosen for experimentation? If the experimental results prove that the new system is better, then adopt the new system. If the new system has problems, it will not affect the whole of France, right?"
Little Dai nodded in admiration, "Yes, what you say is right, teacher."
Jiang Xinlong chuckled and began to analyze the problems with the system of free competition, "Our Da Ming Minister of Rites, Minister Meng, said that the biggest problem with this system is that it is not fair enough, or rather, it only maintains superficial fairness."