There was constant chatter in the hall, and everyone gathered together in twos and threes to talk. What happened today was enough to shock them for a while.
Zhou Zi also found Lu Zhonglian. The two had been friends when they were in Qi State. Later they came to Zhao State, and now they are both ranked among the Twelve Ministers.
However, Zhou Zi arrived in Handan not long ago and was notified to be the Shaofu. He had been in Jixi before and had no idea about Zhao Guo's future plans. Today he learned the details for the first time.
"The king has made so many plans at once, including raising benefits and salaries, building schools, postal stations, factories, and developing the Loop. Do we have so much money?" Zhou Zi asked worriedly.
Although there are so many development plans that look good, Zhao Guo's future is full of hope. But if it’s not finished in the end, that’s another scenario…
According to his speculation, let alone Zhao State, even if all the money in the world were pooled together, Zhao State's plan could barely be completed.
"It seems like a lot of money is needed, but in fact, what really needs to be paid for is the salaries and benefits of officials, craftsmen, teachers, and soldiers. According to the plan, there will be no war in the next three years. Even if a war occurs, the battlefield will be controlled. overseas, and reduce the scale of the war as much as possible.”
"In other words, this seemingly large amount of money does not need to be paid out in a short time, but will be distributed sequentially over a long period of time in the future. The same is true for officials' pensions and craftsmen's retirement money."
"Starting from next year, the management rights of the Wei State's Chasm will belong to our State of Zhao. The goods of our State of Zhao can be sold southward along the rivers and chasm to the State of Chu, and can also be sold to Jiangdong through Yingshui, Huaishui, and Hangou. .Sold to Huaibei through Jishui, Heshui, and Sishui. As a transportation hub, Honggou’s commercial tax will inevitably increase significantly.”
What Lu Zhonglian didn't know was that as soon as Zhao Mu received the news, he sent people to buy most of the shops on both sides of the divide. In addition to commercial taxes, as long as merchant ships stopped to eat, drink and have sex, Zhao would make money. Get money.
Moreover, this part of the money is protected by the State of Wei. Of course, you have to pay taxes to the State of Wei.
"Other construction of roads, stations, colleges, and factories are all done by captives. The materials are at cost price, very cheap, and they are built in batches. All we have to provide is food, which we purchased from Chu and Qi not long ago. We have a large amount of food, and the navy is fishing aggressively. Our country’s food production is also constantly increasing, so food is not a problem. After next year, the Hetao has settled down, and there is no need to buy food and grass from other countries. Wait until the next year, it will be completely There is no need to send food to the Hetao anymore," Lu Zhonglian said.
In fact, if Zhao State did not invest money in the Loop, the Loop could still develop, but the speed would be much slower, ranging from eight to ten years at least, to one or two generations at most. Only by investing a lot of money in it can we achieve self-sufficiency within three years and support Zhao State in five years.
Zhao Kuo had previously planned to change the administrative system and establish a military merit system, but without the large number of prisoners, horses and cattle provided by Rong Di, he would not have dared to take such a big step at once.
With so much manpower and material resources, it would not be enough to drain Zhao State dry.
The situation is different for prisoners, you can use them however you want.
"The captives... won't they rebel?" Zhou Zi asked. Even if the donkey is overworked, he will give up the pick, let alone the captured enemy. Many of their family members died in the hands of Zhao Guo.
"How could it not be possible? There were more at first, but then there were less." Lu Zhonglian said, "We didn't abuse them. Although they were a little harder and tired, they were fed every meal and had better food than they had before. In the past, they They seem to be herdsmen, but aren't they actually slaves of the nobles? Does one of the cattle and sheep they feed belong to them?"
"Those nobles beat and scolded them at will, but at least we would not beat them innocently. And if they behaved well, we would grant them household registration and give them a piece of land. Later, no one rebelled, and instead worked hard to obtain household registration. After all, rebellion will lead to death, but if you work hard, there is at least hope."
"Do they believe it?" Zhou Zi asked.
"We selected a few prisoners from each coal mine and construction team, gave them household registration and land in front of everyone, and told them that these were the people who told us about their rebellion." Lu Zhonglian said with a smile.
A few pieces of paper and a few pieces of uncultivated land, in exchange for the hard work of hundreds of thousands of prisoners, is simply not a good deal.
Especially when a few traitors who betrayed their compatriots are rewarded, all compatriots are no longer trustworthy, but enemies who may betray themselves.
Everyone has the instinct to survive. In the past, rebellion was the only option in desperate situations. Now Zhao has given them a way to survive. Even though everyone knows that only a few people will be able to obtain household registration in the end, they will still fight for that little chance. Work hard.
When a dog discovers that walking on two legs makes its owner happy, all dogs will begin to learn to walk on two legs.
Zhou Zi was silent for a long time without speaking. This method was too cruel, just like Shang Yang's continuous sitting system, but Shang Yang enslaved his own people, while Zhao Guo enslaved outsiders.
】
"Who came up with this method...?" After a while, Zhou Zi asked.
"Jun Duping." Lu Zhonglian whispered.
As a commander, counselor, and all-round talent in governing the country, Tian Dan is a brick of the Zhao State, which can be moved wherever it is needed.
"This... is indeed his style." Zhou Zi smiled bitterly and nodded.
During the Battle of Jimo, in order to inspire the determination of the people in the city to fight to the death, Tian Dan used counterintuitive tactics to deceive the generals of Qi and make them send troops to dig up the graves of Qi ancestors, burn the dead bodies, and cut off the noses of Qi prisoners.
The idiot who robbed him complied with everything, and he was killed by Tian Dan as expected.
But the incident was not over. There was no airtight wall in the world. After the Yan army was defeated, the incident spread.
Only then did everyone discover that the culprit who dug up their ancestors' graves, burned their remains, and cut off the prisoners' noses was not the Yan army, but Tian Dan.
For most people, the country of Qi is not as important as their family. They can accept the destruction of Qi, but they cannot accept the humiliation of their ancestors.
Tian Dan's reputation plummeted, and most people began to oppose him. In addition, Tian Dan's achievements were so great that the King of Qi did not like him either.
So he just took advantage of the situation and sold it to Zhao Guo...
"This time is different from before. There is no need to pay attention to these things when dealing with Rong Di. We can give them a way to survive by being kind. If we don't give them a way to survive, they can only suffer." Lu Zhonglian waved his hand and said, unlike in the Central Plains, he just wanted to kill all Rong Di. He has no psychological burden.
"I'm overthinking it." Zhou Zi said, he had not yet changed from his previous thoughts.
