Urban Sims

Chapter 442
The consultation meeting lasted for more than half a month, and the charters were basically agreed, and a model was formulated for the legal framework, political structure, and election mechanism.

A "Three-step Plan" was also adopted, aiming to establish a country within three to five years.

What are the three steps?

The first step is to build momentum!

Through newspapers, magazines, high-class banquets, gossip and other channels, carry out large-scale and high-intensity publicity campaigns, publicize the benefits and advantages of building a country, attract people's attention, arouse people's interest, attract people with lofty ideals, and continue to join "Jianyuan Party".

The second step is partial nation-building.

In the Alliance of Hundred Cities, first recruit some of the most active city-states (you don’t need many, just 3 to 40 city-states are enough), build a prototype of a country, and try to run some of the country’s functions. It is best to achieve immediate results. After bringing significant benefits, attract more city-states to join.

The third step is to build a country in an all-round way.

Seeing the results and the real benefits in front of you, although you will lose some things after joining the country, compared with the benefits you get, those you lose are really nothing to worry about. A wise person will not refuse this opportunity.

Of course, there is the last step of eliminating stubbornness that is not written on it, but everyone knows it well.

Zhou Ming also personally estimated that there will be about 10%-20% of the city-states, no matter how great the benefits are, they will not be willing to join the national system, and no matter how much persuasion they do, it will not help.

These diehards will get the treatment they deserve.

Therefore, in the next five years, the development of things basically followed the plan of "Three Steps", gradually realizing Zhou Ming's vision.

The momentum of the first step lasted for nearly a year.

Due to the vigorous development of education and the improvement of the literacy rate of the people, the newspaper industry and novel magazine publishing industry in the Hundred Cities Alliance are extremely prosperous. Most of these industries are controlled by the Zhenlin City Chamber of Commerce. With the propaganda weapon in hand, the effect is immediate. .

The most excited and active group of people, first of all, are businessmen. They are in favor of the upcoming integration of the Hundred Cities Alliance into a country.

They even rushed to tell each other and jointly lobbied.

"The country is so good to us! In the future, when we pass through a city, we have to pay a road tax once. In the future, we only need to pay the tax once, and we can do business in all directions without having to pay taxes many times."

"The abolition of multiple road taxes is only second, and the national unified road network, rail network, and air transportation network will be adjusted and transformed to make it more convenient, faster, and the charges will be more reasonable."

"I also heard that after the establishment of the country, the army will launch a joint operation to wipe out all bandits and bandits in the country. When they go abroad to do business, the army will send escorts to protect the property of our merchants."

"What? There are such benefits, how is it possible?"

"It's true. The development of the Hundred Cities Merchant Alliance has stagnated in recent years. One is that thieves are rampant within the territory, wantonly plundering merchants; the other is that the external environment is harsh, and all forces regard us as fat sheep and slaughter them! With a country behind us, the situation will definitely get better."

"Support and support, I am willing to give out [-] spirit coins to support! If such a country really appears, my firm, Lu, can do a lot of business."

"I also took out [-] spiritual coins, hoping that the country will be established soon!"

The merchants were collectively enthusiastic, and the city lords of various cities or their families had heated discussions about this so-called "country" in private, but their views were different, their attitudes were complicated, and serious differences and disputes even occurred.

……

a certain city.

The heads of several families held various newspapers in their hands, studying and discussing.

"I think the concept of this country is very good. It can gather manpower, financial resources and material resources to achieve some great things that benefit everyone. For example, this newspaper said that a large building can be built on Jingping Lake in Jinshui City. The reservoir can not only regulate and store floods, but also reclaim tens of millions of acres of spiritual crystal rice fields in the middle and lower reaches that are often flooded by floods. The prospect is very good... But such a large project, a single city, cannot have capacity building."

"There is also a large-scale track network. Most of the current tracks are cheap tracks built in plain areas, and the length rarely exceeds a thousand miles. Once they reach a place with high mountains and plenty of water, they cannot afford to build them, or they cut corners and change them to gold tracks. The quality of wooden rails and bridges is also poor. Heavy-duty locomotives cannot pass at all, and only some horse-drawn trucks and ox-drawn trucks can run. The transportation capacity is greatly reduced... If the country has the financial resources to build an efficient and unified rail network, economic vitality will be greatly improved. .”

"Yes, the newspaper said that there is a city called Gaoling City. There is a very rich spiritual stone mine in the territory, which is worth more than tens of billions of spiritual coins. , these years have been guarding Baoshan to beg for food, eagerly hoping that someone will pay for them to build a road out of the mountain, so that they have the ability to mine the Lingshi mine to make a fortune."

"The country can use this money to help them build that road to wealth."

These few Patriarchs are talking good things about the national system.

"No! You can't join the country. Joining will do us great harm!" A certain Patriarch said with a gloomy face.

"What harm?" Several people were puzzled.

"Road tax, road tax alone, our annual loss in the future will be more than millions of spirit coins!"

"We can't bear this loss. Before joining the Hundred Cities Merchant Alliance, we had already agreed that the mirror road tax should not exceed the limit of 5%. This time, we will obey them again, and the mirror tax will be completely cancelled. We will make concessions again and again, and lose again and again. , our rights will be taken over by them in the future!"

Someone immediately explained: "You can't say that. The newspapers also explained that although the road tax has been reduced, it will be compensated from the commercial tax when the economic vitality improves in the future, and we can earn more. We can't just count the loss. , regardless of income."

He also emphasized: "After the road tax is cancelled, the sales and net profit of our city's products in other cities will also increase a lot, which is enough to offset the loss of the road tax!"

The man turned his head away and said: "I know, but it is our own right to set the road tax more or less! They cancel it if they ask, what is our face?"

face?

Turns out that was the crux of the problem.

Many homeowners present also tasted tea and pondered, thinking about this question:
Is the part right in hand important?

Or is it more important to get more economic benefits?

Some people choose rights, thinking that rights are more important and cannot be lost at all, even if they earn less spiritual coins.

But most people still choose economic interests, thinking that they can take out some unimportant rights in exchange for exciting benefits.

As for face, when others are multi-millionaires and billionaires and you are just a millionaire, how can you, a millionaire, have face compared to them?

For things like face, it doesn't depend on what you are insisting on, but on what others like to compare with?
If people are chasing spiritual coins and comparing their wealth, if you hold on to the little bit of power in your hand, I am afraid that someone will call him a fool.

At this time, that person lost face even more.

However, in the Hundred Cities Alliance, there are quite a few cities that regard the power in their hands as more important than real benefits.

Would rather not even make that money than join the so-called "country".

And a common feature of these uncooperative cities is that there is only one family that rules that city.

In other words, the entire city is the "private property" of a certain family, not a joint governance of multiple families.

Zhou Ming called this kind of city "a city of one family".

Among the 110 cities in the Hundred Cities Chamber of Commerce, 43 cities belong to the "city of one family", accounting for a large proportion.

These "cities of a family", in the face of the heated public opinion and discussions about the establishment of the country, most of them responded indifferently and lukewarmly, and only a few responded positively.

In a few cities, the attitude was sensitive and the reaction was fierce. People were strictly prohibited from discussing the founding of the country, and those businessmen who jointly signed a letter requesting to join the country were arrested and thrown into prison!

He overreacted, like a brat glaring at others for fear that the lollipop in his hand would be snatched away.

For these cities with stubborn attitudes, Zhou Ming certainly has a solution, but he doesn't plan to solve them immediately.

Because after the campaign ended, the second step of work went very smoothly. So far, 55 cities have agreed to join the "country" he defined, structured, and created.

(End of this chapter)