Outside the west wall of Jinling City, there is a straight cement road from the inside of the city to the Parrot Island on the riverside. The straight road is wide enough for several carriages to run parallel to each other. It is lined with shops and restaurants on both sides. It is currently the busiest thoroughfare outside Jinling City.
All this is thanks to the weapons manufacturing bureau and gunpowder factory on Bailuzhou in the river outside the west city. Countless amounts of iron ore and coal came from the upper reaches of the river, and wood, sulfur, and saltpeter were transported from the east and south. Stone materials and food supplies were concentrated here. There are countless civilians and coolies, as well as merchants from the north and south. The ferry is bustling, but busy but not chaotic.
Because there are sergeants on duty at the ferry, and there are also government officials patrolling busy areas to ensure good security outside the city.
This is true outside the city, and it is true inside the city. The road was widened to ten meters, two meters of blue brick sidewalks were added on each side of the road, and tall ginkgo trees dug from outside the city were planted. Sewers were complete, public toilets, and trash cans made the entire Jinling City clean and tidy.
What has given the city a completely new look is not only the supporting public facilities, but also the changes in the living styles of the city's citizens. Open defecation has almost disappeared, spitting has been greatly reduced, there are no flying eagle lackeys, tea shops and restaurants, the talk is all about the New Deal, and the increasingly fierce martial arts.
From time to time, officers from Jinling Lecture Hall in military uniforms, students in uniforms from Jinling University Hall and Jinling Normal School, as well as new-looking new troops trained by the imperial court, can be seen on the street.
Those delicate and pitiful women who were swaying with willows in the wind, and who walked in sedan chairs when they went out, suddenly became rare. More women are coming out, they have let go of foot binding, and they no longer hold back the door or step outside the door. Because once their feet are bound, they will have to pay a huge "foot-binding tax" just like fighting cocks and crickets.
All the above show that Jiangnan East Road, including the entire Song Dynasty, was undergoing a New Deal revolution.
The war in the northwest has come to an end. Since the official did not publicize it much and the newspapers were indifferent, not many soldiers knew about the news that the Song Army occupied Lanzhou and advanced to Hexi. The entire Jinling City was also calm.
The autumn air is crisp and the golden breeze is blowing. Zhao Hong is walking slowly in the martial arts lecture hall and teaching field in Jinling, followed by Xuan Zhen, the Minister of the Ministry of War, Wang Gang, the envoy of Jiangnan East Road, Hu Mengyu, the appeasement envoy of Jiangnan West Road, and others.
"Your Majesty, Fan Zhong, the envoy of the Hexi Road System, reported that as of today, 15,000 Hexi Road troops have been stationed in the four counties of Hexi, 50,000 Sichuan troops, more than 150,000 Sichuan immigrants, and more than 160,000 original Xixia aborigines. The total number of soldiers and civilians is 380,000. There are more than 2 million acres of farmland, and there are more than 8,000 horses of various types at the Zhangye County Racecourse."
After Xuan Zhen finished his report, he looked at Zhao Hong and asked with a sad face.
"Your Majesty, are you going to use troops again?"
Reinforcing Xixia, fighting fiercely with the Mongolian army, seizing the Jin people's Lintao Road at all costs, and then advancing to Hexi with the army, wasn't it just for the war horses in Hexi?
Is it too high a price to offend Mongolia, Jin, and Xixia for the sake of war horses and cavalry?
Ambitious and aggressive, could it be that the emperor was not satisfied and was preparing to use troops against the Jin Kingdom?
Want to use troops again?
Zhao Hong glanced at the serious-faced ministers and shook his head slightly.
In a world of great strife, the weak eat the strong and the fittest survive. Even if you don't want to start a war, you have to start a war.
The powerful Mongol Empire will not let you rule by doing nothing and stay in peace.
"Your Majesty, do you want to use troops against the Jin people?"
Wang Gang also frowned and asked softly.
It seems that he is also worried about the imperial court's use of troops abroad.
"I would like to use troops, but just the fierce fighting with the Tatars, the rewards and pensions for the soldiers, and the occupation of Hexi will cost tens of millions of dollars. The people of Sichuan are already miserable. Sichuan will also have to bear the burden of Hexi for the next two to three years. of immigration and food supplies.”
Zhao Hong smiled bitterly and walked with his hands behind his back, feeling worried.
During the past few years of internal fighting among the Mongolian nobles, the Song Dynasty was able to recuperate and prepare for future wars. Such an opportunity for recovery is extremely precious, and the Song Dynasty must not miss it.
"New policies are being implemented on Jiangnan East Road and Zhejiang West Road, which will be promoted nationwide next year. Huizi has devalued, prices have soared, and people are living in hardship. It will take three to five years for me to eliminate the shortcomings before we can use troops."
Practicing frugality in the palace can reduce expenditure, but to increase revenue, it lies in developing the economy, creating a relatively fair and just social environment through the New Deal, and prospering all industries.
And the amount of national wealth emptied by corrupt officials and powerful officials is definitely not small, and it can even be enough for him to launch another war.
As far as the new policy of Jiangnan East Road is concerned, Jiankang Prefecture has jurisdiction over five counties: Shangyuan, Jiangning, Jurong, Lishui, and Liyang. According to official statistics, there are more than 4.3 million acres of farmland, but since the implementation of the boundary law, the newly counted farmland area has reached more than 7.7 million acres, and the difference has reached 3.4 million acres. Even if we exclude the barren and uncultivated land, there is still a shortfall in taxes. Forty percent.
Under land annexation, people lost their land and became tenant farmers. The powerful annexed the land, leaving part of the land uncultivated, and the people lost their land, leaving them with no land to farm. Strange things happened in the Song Dynasty.
"Hu Mengyu, Jiangnan West Road is the same as Jiangnan East Road. The fish scale books have been kept. Also, have all the powerful officials and gentry in Jiangxi who hid taxes paid back their taxes?"
Zhao Hong turned around and looked at Hu Mengyu beside him.
The cost of military training is huge, as can be seen from the military training on Jiangnan East Road. The Jiangnan East Road Navy alone needs more than 300,000 yuan in salary. Jiankang Prefecture has 50,000 elite soldiers, and their annual salary is more than 3 million guan.
"Back to Your Majesty, Jiangnan West Road is implementing the New Deal in an orderly manner. The taxes for the past three years have been repaid, totaling more than 3 million yuan, which is probably enough to cover the expenses of Jiangnan West Road's New Deal."
Hu Mengyu quickly replied.
Jiangnan West Road implemented the New Deal, used thunderous means to deal with the recalcitrant conservative forces, and even went so far as to kill people. The achievements he made also inspired him.
The successful implementation of the New Deal on the Jiangnan Road, the Two Zhejiang Road, and the Sichuan Road will lead to the implementation of the New Deal on all roads in the Song Dynasty next spring.
With the emperor's decisiveness and iron-blooded methods, the Song Dynasty's new policy in the coming year is exciting.
"Three million guan, the total of several channels is only 10 million guan. For the more than 200 million Huizi, it is just a drop in the bucket!"
Zhao Hong shook his head and sighed.
It is not easy for Huizi with 230 million yuan to change his career.
"Your Majesty, the hidden tax on Jiangnan East Road is almost 40%, the two Zhejiang Roads are 30%, and the Song Dynasty 17th Road is almost 25%. In one year, the tax can be increased by 10 million yuan. This year's fiscal expenditures in various places , generally can handle it.”
Wang Gang finally spoke.
The emperor resisted the pressure and implemented the New Deal in the Four Roads of the Song Dynasty. The results achieved were astonishing, which also proved the necessity of implementing the New Deal. As long as you persevere and don't change your orders day after day, there won't be any problem if you keep your meetings stable.
"It is better to increase revenue or reduce expenditure, and it is particularly important to increase revenue. The fundamental reason for the poverty and weakness of the Song Dynasty is that the land area is too small. 2.8 million square kilometers actually supported 70 million people. The Song Dynasty needed to expand its territory and divert the population crisis .”
Zhao Hong sighed quietly, and the ministers were used to hearing it. They were used to the new words coming from the emperor's mouth.
"What your Majesty said is absolutely true. Throughout the dynasties, until the end of the world, there has been a struggle between population and land. The land cannot support the people, and the rise of dynasties is based on the loss of population. We, the Song Dynasty, live in a corner of the south of the Yangtze River. We are inherently deficient. If we want to To get out of the predicament, it is inevitable to open up new territories and expand the territory, just like seizing Hexi will benefit the country and the people."
Hu Mengyu echoed Zhao Hong’s point of view.
Just like the Song army occupied Hexi and settled the border areas, Sichuan can alleviate the pressure of a population of millions and improve people's livelihood.
"Hexi is still too small."
Zhao Hong suddenly turned his head and looked at everyone.
"Do you know how much cultivated land there is on Hebei Road north of the Yellow River?"
The Hebei Plain, a vast area of plains, was a source of grain, but it was a pity that it was looked down upon by the monarchs and ministers of the Northern Song Dynasty.
As the Song Dynasty Navy expands overseas, Borneo, Australia, the Indian Ocean, and Africa will be colonized and developed wherever the Song Dynasty Navy warships can reach. In less than ten or twenty years, the population crisis of the Song Dynasty was naturally resolved.
"Your Majesty, I have checked the old records and found that there are more than 600,000 hectares of cultivated land on the east and west roads of Hebei Province. If the canal can be re-opened, there will be even more cultivated land."
Wang Gang thought for a moment and said it.
"Of the 600,000 hectares, each of the civilian villages, merchants, and military villages will occupy one. In terms of five guans per acre, the imperial court can get 100 million guans from the merchant villages alone, and the crisis in Huizi will be easily solved."
Zhao Hong said it slowly, his heart agitated.
The homeland is hard to leave. Compared with overseas, it is almost half-sold and half-given. If the two rivers are captured, the merchant village alone can solve a lot of financial troubles.
"Your Majesty, do you want to use troops against Hebei? Absolutely not!"
Xuan Zhen quickly persuaded Zhao Hong.
The Battle of Shukou has just ended, and there are many wastes waiting to be revitalized. We cannot resort to military aggression and start another military campaign.
"The Tatar army marched across the north of the Yellow River. Wherever the iron cavalry went, the common people were killed. All the children of gold and silk, cattle, sheep, horses and livestock were swept away. The houses were burned and the city walls were in ruins. Hebei was in dilapidated condition and there were not many common people. , is not the time to use troops."
Zhao Hong stared at the students practicing in the martial arts hall and said with a smile:
"Do you think the Jin people will remain indifferent after the Tatar army retreats?"
Several ministers looked at each other and laughed.
When the Mongolian army retreats, the Jin people will definitely take advantage of every opportunity to take back Hedong and Hebei. However, with the current strength of the Jin people, self-protection is not enough. It may be fanciful to want to fight back and regain the "old soil".
"Hedong and Hebei are already in ruins. If I use troops, I will need about 150,000 troops to compete with the Tatar army. I am afraid it will take two or three times to organize and train an army of 150,000, armor and weapons, and the food and supplies needed after occupying Hedong and Hebei. Time to prepare."
Zhao Hong thought about it and said it.
It is easy to lay down but difficult to consolidate. The two rivers are damaged and must have enough food and time to recover. Hundreds of thousands of troops may only be mobilized from overseas to support the Northern Expedition.
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
All the ministers nodded in agreement.
The Hebei Plain is conducive to Mongolian cavalry operations. Without an army of hundreds of thousands, I am afraid it will be impossible to suppress the situation.
The emperor's appetite is getting bigger and bigger, and he wants to go head-to-head and compete with the Mongols for the world.
"Your Majesty, Chuzhou Tang reported that there was civil strife in Chuzhou. Li Quan was unable to survive because of the military rations, and there were many complaints. Guoan Yong, Zhang Lin and other five people killed Li Quan's brother Li Fu and Li Quan's two sons, and also killed Li Quan's concubine Liu. , and sent a letter of his head to Jinling. Your Majesty cut off the pay and silver of the Chuzhou Loyal and Righteous Army, and Li Quan showed weakness to the court. Please let your Majesty make it clear how the court should deal with it."
Xuanzhuo's report involved the matter of Li Quan in Huaidong.
"Xuanqing, what do you think of the incident in Chuzhou?"
Zhao Hong kicked the ball to his Minister of War.
Li Quan surrendered to Mongolia, thinking that he was unnoticed, but Zhao Hong knew it well. He issued an order to cut off Li Quan's money and food supply in Chuzhou faster and more ruthlessly than in history, thus causing Li Quan's civil strife. He did not expect that Li Quan would start asking Song Ting for food and salary.
"Your Majesty, Chuzhou has frequent military disturbances and the place is in ruins. It is better to reject Li Quan and wait and see what happens."
The court's military training was successful, and Xuan Zhen seemed to have become much more radical.
"Xuanqing, just do what you say. Li Quan will send his troops south at any time, asking Du Gao to defend on the Yangzhou and Taizhou front lines, and at the same time, asking Meng Gong to lead troops into the west of the canal to form a horn with Du Gao. Then adjust the coastal system to allow the navy to enter the Huaidong sea and wait for an opportunity to destroy Li Quan."
Zhao Hong frowned and gave the military order, feeling a headache.
Li Quan, this troublemaker and the invincible Xiao Qiang, left him speechless.
He did not want to rashly launch a war on the Eastern Front. He wanted to accumulate strength and prepare for a large-scale war between Mongolia and Song Dynasty in the next few years.
The game between great powers has been fierce for a long time, has limitations, and will eventually unify. This is also the inevitable and law of history.
Now it seems that the only choice is to break up with Li Quan.
"Your Majesty, the matter of changing borders is related to the people's livelihood and the foundation of the country, and there is no need to delay. Please make your decision carefully!"
Zhen Dexiu once again reported the change of world.
It seems that the imperial treasury is empty, counterfeit currency is rampant, and Huizi is devalued, which has made him restless.
"Zhen Gong, in the winter of the 16th year of Jiading, at the last court meeting before the imperial festival, you and I used counterfeit money at breakfast, do you still remember?"
Zhao Hong felt a little emotional when he mentioned the past.
Unknowingly, he has been in this time and space for three full years.
"Your Majesty, I remember. Your Majesty wants to take action against counterfeit coins?"
"If we want to change the world, we must first eradicate counterfeit currency and trace the source. How is the investigation of the counterfeit currency by the Ministry of Revenue?"
In fact, in Zhao Hong's heart, he is more inclined to open up new territories and transfer territory, which will lead to devaluation and population crisis. In terms of increasing revenue or reducing expenditure, open source is obviously more effective.
"Back to Your Majesty, the source is still in the paper. Once the paper from the paper mill is leaked, counterfeit currency will be much easier to counterfeit, and it will be difficult to distinguish the authenticity of the counterfeit currency. If the problem of counterfeit currency paper is eliminated, counterfeit currency will not be easy to spread. Ministry of Household Affairs If the inspection is not effective, Your Majesty will punish you."
Without good paper, no matter how realistic the text and layout are, it will be easy to read. The reason why counterfeit money is difficult to detect lies in the quality of the paper.
"The Ministry of Household Affairs and the Anti-Corruption Department will hand it over and let them investigate. The counterfeit banknote issue will be solved and we can change the world! It's time for those daring rats to reveal themselves."
I heard that Li Quan, who was in Huaidong's separatist regime, was also furiously printing Huizi, which really made people speechless. As long as the source is cut off, the fake Huizi popularized by Li Quan and the Song Dynasty will not be a pile of waste paper.
As for eradicating counterfeit currency, it is not a matter of one or two days. People are only interested in profit, so we still need to set up special agencies to target and crack down on them.
