Chapter 53: Ownership and Shares

“Of course, we’re not just hiring people to do small-time business. We’d lose our shirts if we hired everyone,” Wu Nanhai said. “My idea is for us to be the wholesalers, letting individual entrepreneurs get their goods from us. For example, for those selling breakfast now, we can set up our own food service enterprise to make breakfast and wholesale it to the vendors. There’s also candied haws, popsicles, grass jelly, shaved ice, tofu pudding, cotton candy… We can also open larger-scale chain restaurants ourselves, selling breakfast in the morning, boxed lunches at noon and in the evening, and cold drinks at other times. I think we should call it the ‘Red Flower Society’.”

“Damn, then we’d have to set up an ‘Iron-Blooded Youth League’ too!” Ye Yuming said, a cold light flashing in his eyes. “Old Wu, speaking of selling tofu pudding, do you like it sweet or savory?”

“Well, I prefer the traditional taste,” Wu Nanhai dodged the question and changed the subject. “What do you think of my idea?”

“It’s good, but currently, Dugong and the Planning Institute are not particularly in favor of small-scale individual businesses. Although they haven’t said so explicitly, I feel they don’t want more manpower flowing into non-productive sectors…”

“We’re not setting up this business for profit or anything. It’s mainly to provide more livelihoods for everyone and increase social stability. Letting more people be self-reliant… we can’t have everyone working in factories or fields. The tertiary industry is in demand by the people, and it’s a very important supplement to large-scale production! In the future, there will inevitably be intermittent labor surpluses that industry and agriculture can’t absorb. We’re just preparing for a rainy day.”

Ye Yuming nodded, “Can the Senate approve this?”

“It doesn’t need the Senate’s approval,” Wu Nanhai said. “The Tiandihui isn’t a government agency. It’s just an industry association under the guidance of the Agricultural Committee. At most, it’s a public institution with a reference to the civil service system. We just need to report it to the State Council, and Dugong’s signature will be enough.”

“The question is, will Dugong be willing to approve it?”

“Have you read the latest issue of ‘Weekly Dynamics’?” Wu Nanhai asked in return.

“I haven’t had time yet.” Ye Yuming was a busy man.

“There’s an article about the statistics and current arrangements for personnel in the civil affairs system who have been disabled in the line of duty. It’s unsigned, but I guess it was written by Liu Muzhou. There are quite a few natives who have been partially disabled after recovering from industrial accidents and war injuries.”

In Lingao, there were no completely disabled people who had lost all ability to work. With their current medical and health standards, such injured people simply couldn’t be saved.

These people were currently mainly placed in relatively simple auxiliary work positions, but this was not a long-term solution. Therefore, Wu Nanhai believed that some of the disabled could be absorbed in the form of the Red Flower Society, allowing them to be self-reliant.

“…We can give these people preferential treatment in terms of experience—the Tiandihui can just charge them the cost price. Plus tax incentives. That should be enough to ensure they and their families have no worries about food and clothing.” Wu Nanhai’s face showed a slight expression of “worrying about the country and the people.”

Ye Yuming nodded. In that case, it would be easier to get it passed by the State Council.

With the major plans settled, both of them relaxed. Wu Nanhai made a gesture, and the waitress brought a new pot of Oolong tea. As he poured tea for Ye Yuming, he said:

“After this is done, I plan to ask the Senate at the plenary session to confirm the current equity, ownership, and dividend distribution methods…” Wu Nanhai continued, “We are now in a typical state of ownership confusion…”

“I don’t understand,” Ye Yuming was stunned and didn’t react for a moment.

“What kind of institution do you think our Senate is?”

“Of course, it’s a parliament.”

“The Senate is essentially the board of directors of the East India Company!” Wu Nanhai said. “We are actually running a country now, just like the relationship between the British East India Company and India back then!”

Ye Yuming felt uncomfortable with this analogy, but in terms of the specific distribution of power, he admitted that it was indeed the case.

“Even so, it has been said that all property under the Transmigration Group belongs to all senators. But now our plate is getting bigger and bigger. We need diversified sources of funding. Secondly, it’s not just the senators who are participating in the construction of this new society. We must also fully consider their interests. Finally, it is by no means appropriate for a company to run a country. Therefore, I believe that we must clarify responsibilities, rights, and interests from now on. The state of the Senate being the country should be changed. So I think it is necessary to conduct an asset valuation of state-owned enterprises and confirm ownership now. Separate state-owned and Senate-owned, so that we can have clear accounts in the future. Otherwise, it will be a muddle-headed account over time.”

He took a breath, as if he had more to say, “Because of the unclear issues of responsibility, rights, and interests, there is a series of problems that have not yet been specifically addressed, such as whether land can be privately owned. If these issues are not clarified, how can we continue our institutional and legal construction?”

Ye Yuming said with concern, “If you submit this proposal, will it be considered an attempt to carve up the Senate’s property? Everyone is already worried about restructuring and the shareholding system.”

“Adhering to state-owned enterprises as the mainstay is an unshakable principle. I am now worried that the confusion between the Senate and the state will leave behind hidden dangers in the future,” Wu Nanhai said, a little excited. “If I really had that intention, I could just play dumb. Anyway, ‘state-owned’ is ‘Senate-owned.’ The legal concepts for dividing up the property are all ready-made. If we distinguish and clarify it now, we can prevent someone from using this name to carve up the Senate’s property in the future!”

Ye Yuming was thoughtful, “Now that you say it, I also feel it’s not quite right.” He continued, “And the issue of senator stock dividends is also a vague concept.”

“Exactly!” Wu Nanhai nodded repeatedly. “The Senate is the Senate, the state is the state. They can no longer be confused. We are now in a typical situation of no separation between government and enterprise, and unclear responsibilities and rights.”

Ye Yuming thought, Wu Nanhai’s thinking is very correct. However, from a deeper perspective, if these things are not done in advance, the new generation of senators in the future will one day be left with the reputation of “carving up state property.” The future naturalized citizens will not be like the current ones, who are grateful for what is almost a second life and hold a simple and sincere loyalty to the Senate. But as productivity improves and the overall living and cultural standards of society rise, they will sooner or later “eat meat from the bowl and curse their mother after putting it down.” At that time, the great, glorious, and correct image of the Senate will inevitably be destroyed.

Don’t underestimate the image of being great, glorious, and correct. Since ancient times, the most important thing for a government to maintain is its own legitimacy. Ancient monarchs all claimed to have been granted divine right by heaven, and modern countries all claim to represent the interests of the country and the people. The new country established by the Senate is naturally no exception.

How many senators have realized this? Ye Yuming thought with mixed feelings.

The two discussed this issue for a while, wrote down a few more notes, and talked until almost ten o’clock before dispersing. This was already very late in Lingao.

When Wu Nanhai returned home, it was already ten-thirty at night. After washing up with Chuqing’s help, Wu Nanhai changed into loose cotton pajamas and sat down in the living room. Chuqing was also wearing a long house dress.

The electric light was on. Wu Nanhai opened the leather-bound Bible and said, “Come, today we will study Exodus, chapter twenty, verses one to seventeen.”

“Three and a half years of hard work, and in one night, we’re back to where we were before liberation,” Li Yan said with a grin to Jiang Shan, holding the newly received telegram.

“Your words don’t match your expression,” Jiang Shan put down the file in his hand and thought about the various reports submitted by the Ming affairs department recently. “What? Did Wu Mingjin get a promotion?”

“Director Jiang is indeed a master strategist…” Li Yan smiled and nodded. “Exactly!”

According to the telegram from Guangzhou, Wu Mingjin had been promoted to Tongpan of Leizhou because his term of office was up and his performance evaluation was outstanding.

Based on Wu Mingjin’s performance evaluation, he did deserve a promotion and transfer. The Senate and the Intelligence Bureau were not very willing to let this excellent collaborator slip out of their grasp, so they linked him to the “Tang Monk Plan.”

From its initial planning to the present, the Tang Monk Plan had taken nearly three years and had always been one of the main tasks of the intelligence system. Although as time went on, people within the Executive Committee and the Intelligence Bureau constantly questioned whether it was necessary to continue this plan, the thought of being able to directly control a local official who had penetrated deep into the officialdom was still very tempting for intelligence personnel.

However, during the planning stage, the candidates for “Tang Monk” had changed several times. Although they always focused on down-and-out scholars, they soon discovered that it was not difficult to get down-and-out scholars to defect to them, but it was difficult to get them to be spies. The psychological barrier was still very large.

Being a spy was always a dishonorable and unseemly thing, let alone impersonating a court official! For many scholars, the orthodox status of the Ming Dynasty had not yet been completely broken.

Li Yan felt that instead of letting a poor scholar tremble with fear while impersonating the Prefect of Leizhou, it would be better to simply support an existing official. His idea was approved by Jiang Shan.

In the entire Qiongzhou, there were many minor Ming officials willing to cling to the Senate’s thigh. Wu Mingjin could only be considered to be in the semi-reluctant category. However, thanks to the Senate, his performance evaluation was the best, and his term was about to end, so he was a more suitable candidate.

The only drawback was that the Prefect of Leizhou was a fourth-rank official, while Wu Mingjin was only a seventh-rank official. According to the rules, he would have to be promoted to Tongpan first, then Tongzhi, and then he could become a Prefect. If he was just an auxiliary official, it would be of little consequence to the Intelligence Bureau.

“Actually, we have a way to get him promoted quickly,” Li Yan said at the discussion meeting. “Just sell out the ‘Tang Monk’ directly.”