Once this matter is carried out, Jiang Fu himself will be in a very dangerous situation.
But Jiang Fu felt that as long as the news was not revealed, as long as the secret was kept tightly and a separate team was created to take charge of the matter, no one would know who was behind the secret operation.
With his identity so obvious, he might also have a great opportunity to become a deepwater wolf, and he might be able to survive until the end.
The premise of everything is confidentiality.
When it comes to his own life, Jiang Fu is very cautious.
Soon after, under his order, the Banknote Printing Department, a secret department hidden in the Ministry of Household Affairs, was born. Jiang Fu personally served as the director of the department and selected his most trusted subordinates to take charge of the affairs.
The "money printing machine" of the Chengdu imperial court began to operate secretly, and information was strictly blocked both internally and externally. No one was allowed to know that this batch of Jiaozi was reprinted, and no one was allowed to know what the purpose of this batch of Jiaozi was. Where will it be sent.
Anyone who does this must have their personal freedom strictly controlled and must not leave the designated area without permission, otherwise they will be arrested and imprisoned.
Everyone involved in the project was given a high salary, and in addition, their immediate family members were kept as hostages by the court to prevent them from becoming disloyal and destroying the court's plan.
After a series of careful preparations, the conspiracy was put into operation.
It is very difficult to make physical currency, but it is almost easy to print money on paper.
The printing-related technology was in their hands. With Jiang Fu's order, millions of Jiaozi of different denominations were printed casually.
Chiang Fu's cooperation alone is not enough, the Privy Council must also cooperate.
They needed to stabilize the army in the early stage and find ways to get the soldiers to accept their orders and not cause trouble, so Zhao Buxi personally and secretly informed Wu Lin about this matter.
Of course, Wu Lin didn't know the whole story. He didn't know that Zhao Buxi planned to use Jiaozi to make money from rich people. He just knew that Zhao Buxi wanted to use Jiaozi to reward soldiers.
Wu Lin felt that the problem was not small and wanted to persuade Zhao Buxi to treat the matter with caution.
It's not that he thinks there is any financial problem, he just thinks very directly that soldiers will be more or less depressed when they find out that their reward is Jiaozi. Everyone knows that iron money is stronger than Jiaozi, and whether Jiaozi is valuable or not is a matter of concern. The bigger picture is that everyone prefers iron money to jiaozi.
So his advice is also very strong and simple.
"Reward the army with coins, and the army will feel happy and inspired. Reward the army with jiaozi, and I'm afraid the army will be demoralized. I ask your Majesty to take a closer look!"
After hearing Wu Lin's words, Zhao Buxi just sighed slightly and shook his head.
"Of course I know that this is a big problem, but the treasury really can't come up with the money. At the moment, we can only reward the army through Yinjiaozi. Mr. Wu, in order to boost the morale of the army, I have an idea. I don't know what you think. "
Wu Lin blinked and said, "Your Majesty, please speak."
"Let the Privy Council inform the military officers and ask them to say something good for Jiaozi. Just say that the imperial court was worried about the difficulty of marching, so it specially prepared Jiaozi for special supply. It is completely different from the Jiaozi circulating in the general market.
Everyone dislikes the jiaozi on the market, but this special jiaozi for the military can be fully exchanged for a sufficient amount of iron money. It is just for the convenience of the soldiers to carry. In this way, the army will surely be more at ease. You Say what? "
Zhao Buxi looked at Wu Lin expectantly.
Wu Lin couldn't say that this method would definitely be useless.
Because the concept of special jiaozi in the military has indeed not been used by rulers, the soldiers may not be able to tell the difference between these jiaozi and ordinary jiaozi for a while.
But soldiers are definitely not fools. Like farmers, they attach great importance to immediate interests and are very persistent in immediate interests. On the battlefield, they are more dangerous than farmers and may lose their lives at any time, so they value tangible benefits more than farmers. Money reward.
If they are dissatisfied, they may mutiny at any time.
In the final analysis, the previous rulers were too inhumane and did things that were unacceptable to the underworld. Even the soldiers’ blood and tears were corrupted and exploited, so that the soldiers had to take extreme measures to fight for their own interests. ruler.
Blackmail an officer on the battlefield, refuse to obey orders and fight without giving a reward, and allow the war to fail. We all risk our lives together. Anyway, we will die. I see if you give it.
To be able to force soldiers to do this, one can imagine what kind of ecology is inside the feudal army, and one can also imagine how the generals in the Western Army harmed the soldiers under their command.
The soldiers at the bottom of the food chain would not dare to resist unless they were deceived to the point of ruining their families.
In this case, it can only be said that they have no trust in each other, no honor, no ties, only cold interests.
Wu Lin was very strict in controlling the soldiers and the military law was strict, but he did not dare to play tricks with the soldiers only in the distribution of interests.
Give what you have to give, give what you have, and never make mistakes financially.
Therefore, his soldiers generally have a certain degree of trust in him, and they never lost their control during the Jin-Song wars. They followed him on the ice and snow to fight the Jin soldiers in bloody battles, which is rare.
Wu Lin, who was born in the Western Army of the Northern Song Dynasty, knew very well how valuable credibility was in the army, and how rare it was for him to have credibility——
What Zhao Buji did now was to let Wu Lin use the credibility he had earned through his lifetime of fighting to support the Chengdu court.
The soldiers may not necessarily trust the Chengdu court, but if Wu Lin speaks out, the soldiers will give him face and believe him once.
This can make this batch of special military friends who are no different have the effect of making a huge difference.
The price is that once Wu Lin fails to fulfill his promise, the credibility gained by Wu Lin's decades of battle will collapse, and it will be basically impossible to build it up again.
How is this not a huge gamble?
So Wu Lin's face was very ugly.
"Your Majesty, can these friends really be exchanged for iron money?"
Hearing this, Zhao Buyi was silent for a while, then looked at Wu Lin with a stern face.
"Of course I can redeem it. Why, Mr. Wu doesn't think this strategy works?"
Wu Lin quickly denied it.
"I dare not, but Your Majesty, the trust of the soldiers in the general is an important reason why the army can win the war. Once this trust is lost, it is really hard to say whether the army can still obey orders and fight to the death."
Zhao Buxi heard the meaning of Wu Lin's words and let out a long sigh.
"During the army's march, there was no chance to exchange jiaozi for money. After the victory of the counter-rebellion, the imperial court's finances would be abundant, and there would naturally be money to exchange for these jiaozi. Mr. Wu should think more about it for the court, and this matter cannot be delayed any longer. ”
Wu Lin lamented in her heart, realizing that she might not be able to escape unscathed this time.
Despite this, he could not refuse Zhao Buxi's request.
"I... obey your order."
The emperor you choose must be recognized even if you cry; the path you choose must be walked even if you kneel down.
But Zhao Buxi seemed to have no psychological burden at all.
He's still outputting.
"Also, this matter is top secret. The fewer people who know about it, the better. Mr. Wu had better not tell other people what I told you, how about it?"
"I... obey your order."
Wu Lin reluctantly nodded and approved Zhao Buxi's order.
So Wu Lin followed Zhao Buxi's request and issued an order in his own name to the officers of the frontline combat troops that only officers could know.
The imperial court ordered that due to financial difficulties, it could not get enough iron money to reward the army for the time being, so it printed a batch of special military gifts to the soldiers, hoping to have the effect of quenching the thirst of plum blossoms.
Officers in the army need to cooperate with the court, promote the merits of Jiaozi, suppress the trend of resisting Jiaozi in the army, and take into account the court's painstaking efforts.
Of course, the rewards for mid-level and high-level officers are also specially provided.
There were iron coins, copper coins, and even some gold, silver, pearls, and jade. In addition, the Sichuan brocade, tea leaves, and porcelain that had been difficult to sell before were given to the officers as rewards. They were kept properly so that they could be sold one day.
This move is to unite middle- and senior-level officers and temporarily suppress the resentment of grassroots officers and soldiers so that the war can continue.
As long as the mid-level and senior military officers maintain a high degree of consistency with the imperial court, they can pressure the army to follow the imperial court.
For the time being, there is no problem.
