Although he felt a little hurt and had to pay more money, seeing that Ye Mingsheng was already looking at him, Cui Shao could only express his stance and said:
"Thank you for your sympathy. The Cui family will definitely support the work of Dadongsheng Company..."
After receiving Cui Shao's statement, Ye Mingsheng nodded with satisfaction. It was comfortable to talk to smart people, and there was no need to say too much at all!
After settling the matter of short-term bond maturity, we can now seriously consider the issue of rewards and pensions for soldiers. Ye Mingsheng continued to ask Cui Shao, who is the chief envoy of Youyan:
'Third uncle, if I remember correctly, the next quarter's tax will be collected in more than a month, right? '
Cui Shao nodded and said:
"Specifically, the collection will start in one month and ten days. When all the taxes are collected, it will take about ten days and a half!"
Ye Mingsheng nodded and said;
"Add it all together and calculate it as two months! In these two months, how much money should the Chief Secretary keep at least to maintain normal operations?"
Faced with Ye Mingsheng's question, Cui Shao did not give an answer immediately, but thought about it carefully before saying slowly:
"About fifty thousand taels of silver!"
After receiving the answer, Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly and said:
"I will leave 70,000 taels of silver for the Chief Secretary. The Chief Secretary must ensure that there are no problems in maintaining stability! As for the remaining money, you are ready to hand over!"
"yes!"
After talking to Cui Shao, Ye Mingsheng looked at Gu Sansi opposite. Under Ye Mingsheng's gaze, Gu Sansi stood up and said:
"Sir, I think that our Fengwu army suffered heavy casualties in this battle. If it cannot be handled properly, it will definitely affect the morale of the army. Therefore, I believe that the rights and interests that the soldiers deserve should be protected as much as possible... ················”
Hearing Gu Sansi say this, Ye Hongsheng and Zhang Juning both looked unhappy. In their opinion, Gu Sansi was just talking nonsense!
Who doesn’t know that lowering the standards of rewards and pensions will affect military morale?
What the fuck do you need to say?
The key is where does the money come from?
There was already less than half of the hole that needed to be filled, but now that the Chief Secretary was left with the 70,000 taels of silver, the hole was undoubtedly even bigger!
Seeing the ugly expressions on the faces of the two Gods of Wealth, Feng Wujun, Gu Sansi didn't stop talking and said directly:
"Although we must try our best to protect the rights and interests of soldiers, but the rewards and pensions given to soldiers may not all be in money!"
As soon as these words came out, everyone was interested. Under everyone's gaze, Gu Sansi asked Ye Hongsheng:
"Shopkeeper Ye, I heard that in order to supply supplies to Jiangnan, workers at the Second Manufacturing Bureau produced nearly 100,000 pieces of cloth in three shifts overnight?"
Ye Hongsheng nodded immediately after hearing this and said:
"That's what happened!"
After finishing speaking, Ye Hongsheng changed his tone again and said through gritted teeth:
"These 100,000 pieces of cloth were ordered by the merchants in Jiangnan, and they also paid a deposit of 10,000 taels of silver in advance. However, because the Luo'an court once again put pressure on Jiangnan in the name of the emperor last month in order to cut off our financial resources, Lu Jianchao did not Resisting the pressure, we strictly inspected the goods we sold to Jiangnan...
"Originally, these cloths have been transported to the Yutai County warehouse to be shipped, but because of this incident, the merchants in Jiangnan did not dare to ask for these 100,000 pieces of cloth. Now all these cloths are sitting in the Yutai County warehouse! "
After saying these words, Ye Hongsheng sighed helplessly. Although the young emperor of the Luo'an court had almost no influence on the Fengwu Army, as the world-recognized orthodox emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he had great influence in other territories of the Great Zhou Dynasty. He is still very influential, and many people of Zhou Dynasty, old and young, are thinking of him!
Therefore, Lu Jianchao could not pretend to be deaf and dumb in the face of the imperial edict issued by the Luo'an court in the name of the emperor. The only pain was for him, the shopkeeper responsible for Fengwu Army's trade. This business was getting harder and harder to do, and the profits were getting higher and higher. It’s getting smaller!
Looking at the frowning Ye Hongsheng, Ye Mingsheng also realized something in his heart. Before the Battle of Yunbin, Shangguan Hongyuan wanted to cut off the Fengwu Army's financial path in Jiangnan and attack the Fengwu Army economically. For this reason, Shangguan Hongyuan Yuan also forced Murong Lun to use his personal relationship with Lu Jianchao.
For this reason, Ye Mingsheng specially sent a personal letter to Lu Jianchao. Perhaps it was because at that time Jiangnan still needed the Fengwu Army to train soldiers and horses for them and prepare to build a firearms production factory, so Lu Jianchao also gave Ye Mingsheng face. I just turned a blind eye and closed one eye to the fact that Dadongsheng Company was always making money in the south of the Yangtze River...
It was precisely with the millions of silver from Jiangnan that the Fengwu Army's two-front battle did not collapse. It persisted under the siege of Shangguan Hongyuan and Xu Zhaojie and had the last laugh!
And now Shangguan Hongyuan is repeating his old tricks and wants to cut off the Fengwu Army's financial path. If this trick is successful, although it will be less effective than directly cutting off the Fengwu Army's financial path during the war, it will still be enough to cause Fengwu Army physical pain. It’s endless, after all, after this battle, the fiscal surplus that was originally a slight surplus will directly turn into a deficit!
In addition, there are many places where Fengwu Army needs to coordinate resources to restore people's livelihood and economy. Now Fengwu Army can't wait to tear a tael of silver in half to spend it.
If Shangguan Hongyuan's conspiracy really succeeds, then the already fragile finances of the Fengwu Army will probably become even worse!
Regarding this matter, what Ye Mingsheng wants to know is what Jiangnan Governor Lu Jianchao thinks!
At the beginning, Shangguan Hongyuan gave orders to Lu Jianchao in the name of the little emperor, but Lu Jianchao ignored him. Later, it was Murong Lun who came forward to ask Lu Jianchao to increase tariffs and intensify inspections on the goods sold by Fengwu Army. , some goods are even prohibited from being exported to Jiangnan.
But now that Murong Lun has not shown up again, Lu Jianchao obediently listened to Shangguan Hongyuan's words. It is difficult not to make Ye Mingsheng wonder whether the training of the Jiangnan firearms unit is about to be completed and the firearms production factory is about to be built. Therefore, Jiangnan felt that the cooperation between the two parties was of no value and wanted to kick Fengwu Army away...
In addition, the cooperation between the Fengwu Army and Jiangnan was originally based on Xu Zhaojie, a common enemy. However, Xu Zhaojie was defeated miserably in Hebei and Henan. Not only did his troops suffer heavy losses, but his hometown of Anqing was also lost. Now Huainan is also in dire straits. , there is no longer a threat to Jiangnan in a short period of time.
Therefore, without this cornerstone, the interest relationship between the two sides is no longer solid. Even as Fengwu Army captured Anqing, Fengwu Army was only separated from Jiangnan by Huainan. In addition, Xu Zhaojie's Zhennan Army declined, and Fengwu Army The army may also be regarded as a threat of invasion by Jiangnan, so Lu Jianchao is naturally unwilling to let Fengwu's army make money in Jiangnan.
Ye Mingsheng looked a little serious when he realized this. If Lu Jianchao really had this idea, then maybe he should reconsider his relationship with Jiang Nan!
While Ye Mingsheng was thinking about Jiangnan issues, Gu Sansi said with a smile:
"It's a good idea to go to Jiangnan if you can't sell it. We can use the cloth at a discount and use it as silver to reward and pension the soldiers! In addition to cloth, we can also have grain, salt, pigs, chickens, ducks, fish, daily chemical products produced by the Second Manufacturing Bureau, and agricultural tools." Fertilizer, these can all be traded in as silver!”
"Liaoyang and Youyan had a good harvest of grain last year. Although a lot of it was consumed in the war in the past few days, many treasuries are full. Rather than leaving all this grain to gather dust in the warehouse, it would be better to use it as food for the soldiers. rewards and compensations!”
"For the rewards for mid-level and high-level generals, the silver rewards can be changed to mansions, beauties, servants, gold, silver, jade, calligraphy and painting, and ancient books. When the last campaign against Hebei Province, some of these things were not disposed of..." ···············”
Listening to Gu Sansi's thoughts, Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly. Gu Sansi's thoughts may be the best way to deal with the current situation and then asked everyone:
"What do you all think about the idea of thinking twice?"
Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, Cui Shao, Ye Hongsheng, and Zhang Juning thought about it and nodded in agreement with Gu Sansi's opinion. Seeing that everyone had unified their opinions, Ye Mingsheng made a decision:
"Since everyone thinks it's okay, then this matter is settled. Think twice about taking the lead on this matter, and work with the Second Manufacturing Bureau to handle this matter. Come up with a plan for my approval as soon as possible. All your departments must cooperate accordingly! "
"yes!"
Everyone said in unison:
After discussing the business, Ye Mingsheng ended the government meeting, and everyone said goodbye and left together. Just when Cui Shao was about to walk out of Ye Mansion, Ye Cheng invited him back to Ye Mansion to accompany Ye Cui. Cui Shao would naturally have no objection to this.
"Cheating Kangxi"
And Mrs. Ye Cui was naturally very happy about the arrival of her third brother. When people get older, they will naturally miss their family ties more. Although they both live in Yijing, their houses are not far apart, but when they see each other, It's also very rare to meet in person. The last time we met was more than a month ago for Mrs. Ye Cui's birthday...
At noon, Cui Shao was specially asked to stay and have dinner with her and Ye Mingsheng. After the meal, Ye Cui felt a little tired, and then she reluctantly said goodbye to her brother. After Ye Cui left, Ye Mingsheng also smiled at Cui Shao and asked:
"Third uncle, how is General Peng's injury?"
Seeing Ye Mingsheng ask about Peng Ce, Cui Shao sighed and said:
"Thanks to the experts from the medical school you sent for treatment, General Peng's injury has stabilized now. However, because he injured a vital part of his abdomen, his vitality was also severely damaged. The doctor also said that he can only live for one day now, count it as one day! "
Ye Mingsheng nodded when he heard this. As the oldest general in the Fengwu Army, Peng Ce, although he did not make any great contributions to the Fengwu Army, he also worked conscientiously in the Fengwu Army's foreign campaigns. Although the credit is not much, the hard work is definitely Yes, as the commander-in-chief, he should take care of them.
After pondering for a moment, Ye Mingsheng said:
"I have ordered the doctors at the medical school to visit General Peng every two or three days and try to extend the life of the old general. Even if things go wrong in the end, don't let the old general suffer too much!"
Hearing Ye Mingsheng, Cui Shao also nodded and said:
"Thank you for your understanding..."
"It's nothing. Old General Peng served me in the north and south with the Fengwu Army. He made outstanding achievements from fighting outside the Pass to inside the Pass. Now the Fengwu Army has suffered a great disaster for me. This is what I should do. I wonder what the old general wants?" Ye Mingsheng nodded and continued to ask;
Facing Ye Mingsheng's inquiry, Cui Shao also understood that Ye Mingsheng had just hit him with a stick at the meeting, and now he wanted to give him a sweet date.
After thinking for a while, Cui Shao said:
"The old general has two sons. The eldest son is named Peng Huan and is currently serving as the deputy commander-in-chief of Guanning Mansion in Liaoyang. This son Peng Le is still young and unmarried at home!"
Ye Mingsheng nodded and said:
"Looking back, I will let Zhao Han make arrangements as appropriate! The old general will definitely feel at ease!"
Cui Shao bowed and said:
"Thank you for your understanding!"
Ye Mingsheng smiled and waved his hand and said:
"It doesn't matter, this is what I should do!"
After speaking, Ye Mingsheng was silent for a while, then looked at Cui Shao and said seriously:
"He Jingyun is also very sorry for what happened to the old general this time. He also blamed himself in the letter he wrote to me. He even wanted to come back and go to the Peng Mansion to apologize in person... ········”
Hearing the name "He Jingyun", Cui Shao's eyes flashed. Sure enough, things are not that simple. Ye Mingsheng finally mentioned He Jingyun. It is generally believed in the Fengwu Army that Cui Shao is the first civilian official and the military attache. The first is He Jingyun, the chief of staff.
In order to prevent Ye Mingsheng from being suspicious, the two of them had always been on the same page except for talking about military expenditures, and they had no contact in private. But this time Cui Shao really hated He Jingyun!
When Cui Shao was young, he encountered bandits in Liaoyang. When his life was hanging by a thread, Peng Ce, who was still a junior corps leader at the time, arrived with his men, killed the bandits and rescued Cui Shao, and the two of them took over. They developed a deep friendship and have been good friends for decades now.
With Cui Shao's help in using the influence of the Cui family, Peng Ce went from a junior corps commander to a general of the Liaoyang army. Peng Ce also turned his army into the Cui family's private army to provide force protection for the Cui family. The pattern was not broken until Ye Mingsheng appeared.
And now, although Peng Ce is still alive, there is not much time left, and the culprit is He Jingyun!
He Jingyunfei took a chicken feather as a command arrow and asked Peng Ce to defend Wankang County. Otherwise, Peng Ce would not have been forced to fight on the front line at an advanced age during the final defense of the city, and was eventually shot in the abdomen by the enemy. Vital, critical injuries······························
