After returning to Chang'an City, various preparations accelerated.
Li Er summoned envoys from all parties many times, constantly mentioned Tuyuhun's invasion of Lanzhou, and clamored that the Tang Dynasty must take revenge.
As for the interception and killing of the mission in Gaochang, there was no mention at all, as if there was nothing they could do because of the distance.
Moreover, Li Er also announced in a high-profile manner that he would send Li Jing, the God of War of the Tang Dynasty who defeated the Turks, as the commander-in-chief.
When the news came out, all parties focused their attention on Tuyuhun and did not even notice that Datang's real target was Gaochang.
Tuyuhun is a nomadic tribe, and with its back on the Tubo Plateau, there is a lot of room for maneuver. It is very difficult to destroy their country in one battle.
Gaochang is different. Its geographical position is placed there, and its capital can be destroyed.
Now Li Er and a group of famous generals are still talking about some strategies and plans, and they have made such a sound of attacking east and west.
In a few years, after the Tang Dynasty's strength has increased rapidly, it will no longer use any strategies, and will just march over and crush it with its army.
At its peak, the Tang Army didn't ask whether they could beat them, only where they were.
The radio station and the operator were taken away by Li Er, and they were hidden so deep that no one knew where they would be used.
Of course, the royalties that should be paid are not small. Li Er, who is so ambitious that he can swallow up the sun and the moon, does not bother to do such things to reduce the price for a few possessions.
The logistical preparations were going very smoothly. With a wealthy man like Li Yunze taking action, everyone except Du Ruhui was very satisfied.
Historically, Du Ruhui died of an accidental illness the year before last. Naturally, this world would not be so miserable. Li Yunze successfully crossed the threshold of death through Sun Simiao's treatment.
The reason why Du Ruhui was dissatisfied was because he was serving as the Minister of Household Affairs of the imperial court at this time, and he had to pay for the logistical materials provided by Li Yunze.
The originally prepared military expenditure was naturally sufficient, but it was prepared according to the previous combat standards of the Tang Army.
But the things Li Yunze gave were too many and too good, and when the military was overjoyed, even Du Ruhui couldn't deny that he wanted them.
However, even if Datang's fiscal revenue has increased significantly compared with the same period in history, there are still more places where money needs to be spent. Especially after the emperor has personally experienced the charm of trains, he is preparing to launch the Daqian Teqian project. How much money does it have? Not enough to fill in.
With no other choice, Du Ruhui could only take the initiative to come to Lijiazhuang to discuss with the owner of Lizhuang.
The person who received Du Ruhui was Sister Wu Meiniang. Although she was not very young, she was already a beautiful woman, with pink flowers and willows, and her hair was already in full bloom.
"Master is sleepy and has not yet woken up. I hope the Duke will forgive me."
After hearing Wu Meiniang's words, Du Ruhui subconsciously raised his head and looked at the sky outside the bright glass window.
The sun is shining brightly, three poles high.
"It doesn't matter." Du Ruhui smiled kindly and waved his hands to show that he didn't care at all.
I have no choice but to take the initiative to ask for help, so I naturally have to keep my attitude low.
Those arrogant and arrogant people in the desert rarely exist in the real reality.
Even if it does exist, it will either be captured by our own side or swallowed up by outsiders.
Those who really do things are well versed in the ways of the world, and this is naturally the case for Du Ruhui.
Sitting and chatting with the two girls from the Wu family, Du Ruhui nodded secretly.
The eldest lady of the Wu family looked a little dumbfounded, but the second lady was extremely shrewd, and even compared to a man, she would not give in to anything.
He is smart and capable in conversation, yet appears to be generous.
If he hadn't known that this girl was either staying in Lijiazhuang or entering the palace, he, Du Ruhui, would have wanted to make arrangements for Du He.
Thinking of this, Du Ruhui's thoughts began to wander, and he didn't know if Princess Changle would be able to suppress it in the future.
Changsun Wuji took over the job of blowing the wind from Li Er. As an old Yin man, of course he would not go directly to Lijiazhuang to blow the wind, but first blow the wind in Chang'an City.
The focus of his work was not on Li Yunze, but on the warrior Xun, the governor of Jingzhou.
I have to say that Changsun Wuji is capable.
After chatting for a long time and changing the tea twice, Li Yunze finally came out.
"I'm sorry." The smiling Li Yunze came up with an excuse, "Last night I reviewed the Yong'an Palace renovation plan. I stayed up too late and got up late."
Du Ruhui's smile became more and more friendly. After the Wu sisters said goodbye and left, they didn't mention any serious matters at all. Instead, they chatted and flattered for a long time.
Li Yunze tried to laugh after dealing with it for a while, so he had to get straight to the point, "If Mr. Du has anything to say, please speak up."
Du Ruhui exhaled, which could be regarded as getting to the point. "This time the imperial army conquered the unconquered ministers, the expenditure is really too high, and it is difficult to maintain the finances."
Hearing this, Li Yunze nodded, "Then what is Du Gong's plan? Is he cutting back on logistics procurement or is he trying to lower the procurement price?"
Du Ruhui was stunned for a while, then said with a wry smile, "I think so."
The Tang army's logistics were naturally provided by the court, but the court did not have many things, but the military was eager for them and had to pay for them.
Du Ruhui's meaning lies in these aspects.
"Okay, let's talk about it one by one." Li Yunze greeted outside the door, "Prepare lunch according to the standards of soldiers on expedition."
Wu Meiniang's response came from outside, and then Li Yunze raised his hand and knocked on the table, "Food, clothing, housing and transportation, let's talk about military uniforms first."
"In this expedition, Tuyuhun and Gaochang will start fighting at the same time. It is expected that 80,000 to 100,000 soldiers will be used, and the number of civilians will be twice that. The departure time will be after the autumn harvest. If the war starts, it will be snowing heavily."
Li Yunze thought about his wording, "Among other things, 150,000 sets of woolen military uniforms, 400,000 sets of cotton coats, and 400,000 pairs of cotton shoes are all necessary. In such a cold weather, they must be worn by soldiers and civilians. It's warmer."
After hearing this, Du Ruhui nodded slightly at first, and then his expression turned serious, "Did you miscalculate? The total number of soldiers and civilians is only two to three hundred thousand, so why do we need 400,000 sets of cotton-padded clothes and shoes?"
"Isn't there any wear and tear?" Li Yunze simply spread his hands, "It was lost on the road, broken or burned, or it became useless for various reasons. Don't you need a spare? Don't Gong Du think that one of these things can be used by one person?" Use it for a lifetime."
"this..."
According to Du Ruhui's thinking, the Tang army could not fight without these things in the past, but now it is so delicate.
Moreover, I have never heard of providing civilian husbands with the same logistical treatment as sergeants. This would cost too much.
Of course, I can only think about this but cannot say it.
The military only cares about whether there are good things. If there are good things, the more the better.
As for how much money needs to be spent, that is a matter for the civil servants, or for him, the Minister of Household Affairs.
The Tang military was so powerful that Du Ruhui couldn't hold it against him.
"The quantity is too great, and the court cannot afford it." Du Ruhui frowned, "Just configure one set per person. In addition, please give me more discounts on the price."
"When doing business, it's always about quantity and discount." Li Yunze, who crossed his legs, also smiled. "I've never heard of buying less and getting a bigger discount."
"This." Du Ruhui smiled helplessly, "Please ask Master Li for help."
"Let's talk about help or something else." Li Yunze said with interest, "Let Your Majesty write an IOU for as much as you want."
These words really made Du Ruhui laugh.
If he really relied on the emperor to write IOUs to get things, if nothing else, he, Du Ruhui, should be the first to hang up his hat and leave without the shame to continue working.
"How about I write an IOU?"
Du Ruhui simply stated, "When the imperial court's income improves, there will not be a shortage of a penny."
"I naturally trust Du Gong's character." Li Yunze said with a smile, "I dare to ask Du Gong, should I write the IOU in my own name, or in the name of the Minister of Household Affairs of the Imperial Court?"
】
No need to ask, of course it is in the name of the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.
If it were written in Du Ruhui's own name, wouldn't it mean that he was sponsoring his own family?
At that time, not only will it not have a good reputation, but it will also receive a double-minded evaluation.
"It's in the name of the imperial court."
"No." Li Yunze simply shook his head, "In a few years, Mr. Du will no longer be the Minister of Household Affairs. I took the IOU to the new Chief Situ to ask for the debt. He said, 'This is owed by my predecessor, and it has nothing to do with me. What should I do?’ Then what should I do, hold the door open and cry, or hang a white silk ribbon in front of the household door?”
Du Ruhui said to himself, 'I'm afraid you will demolish the Yamen directly. '
He had no choice but to keep saying, "Please give me more discounts."
As for saying that I have already made up my mind in my heart, I will resign immediately as soon as this matter comes to light. Whoever wants to do this, the Minister of the Ministry of Finance, can do it. Anyway, he doesn't want to do it anymore. You must know that the subsequent railway project is coming, which is a real bottomless pit.
Li Yunze's attitude was very clear, "It's okay to reduce the order quantity. How much you buy is a matter for the court. But discounts cannot be given. For Du Gong's sake, maintaining the previous discount amount is already the limit. I can't do business at a loss." Bar."
To be honest, compared to its practicality and scarcity, the price offered by Li Yunze is really not high.
Those cotton-padded clothes and shoes are the real treasure to keep out the cold. People who have used them say they are good.
The woolen military uniforms are extremely straight and beautiful, and they look impressive when worn. When the first batch was given to the army for free, the army went crazy.
The real problem is that this expense is extra than before, and what everyone in the household department is most afraid of is this extra expense.
No one at the top or bottom recognized this account, and it could only be blamed on the Ministry of Accounts.
The emperor held the lake, and the military kept begging for it all day long. The important ministers avoided it, and the only one who was unlucky was the Ministry of Household Affairs.
As the boss of the household department, Du Ruhui had no place to spend this extra expense.
In desperation, he could only cover his forehead and sigh, "Let's finish talking about other things first."
"In terms of food, clothing, housing, and transportation, when it comes to food, who can say anything bad about the beef jerky, salted fish, cheese, bean cakes, oil, and pasture produced in Lijiazhuang?"
Du Ruhui agrees very much with this. Everyone really likes the things provided by Lijiazhuang.
It is difficult for the imperial court to achieve this level.
The imperial court could not do such things as killing cattle and making dried meat. Cattle are the most important farming resource, no one dares to kill them indiscriminately.
Moreover, dried meat and salted fish require a large amount of salt for curing, and expensive salt is a huge expense.
Not to mention cheese, there are no black and white cows like Lijiazhuang in the world that can produce so much milk. I have never seen them before.
Bean cakes, oils, pastures, etc. have begun to be grown in other places, but in terms of quality, quantity, and key price, they are not as good as those in Lijiazhuang. The most important thing is that the cost is not as good as others.
The military has stated that these things must not be missing. If the lack of these things leads to the defeat of the war, the blame will be on the Ministry of Revenue.
Du Ruhui naturally sneered at this kind of rhetoric.
In the past, when these things didn't exist, no one would let Tobe take the blame.
In terms of accommodation, the tents provided by Lijiazhuang were of course of the best quality, but Du Ruhui directly cut them all down, because although the quality of the imperial tents was not as good as that of Lijiazhuang, they were still enough for use.
When it comes to skills, the most important things are Lijiazhuang's four-wheeled vehicles and heavy-duty draft horses.
Du Ruhui also chose to cut off everything in this aspect. He only asked to order the key steering damping system and springs, not the finished product.
As for the heavy-duty draft horses, the imperial court already has some. The most important thing is that so many civilians have been used, so there is no need to pay high prices to buy draft horses.
After summarizing all the problems, all the problems still return to the original point.
Where does the money come from?
