4341 (AD 1644), March 27th.
Emperor Su He of the Great China Empire held an imperial meeting in Qianqing Palace.
This is an expanded imperial meeting.
Many officials who were not qualified to participate in the imperial meeting were allowed to participate in the meeting.
Emperor Su He sat on the dragon chair, with a huge sand table in front of him.
This is a realistic sandbox of the world's terrain, showing major mountains and rivers.
Officials from the Cabinet and the Metropolitan Government sat in the front.
Many officials had no place to sit and had to wait nearby.
Officials with lower grades are not even qualified to attend the Qianqing Palace. They need to wait for the call outside.
Qu Tian, deputy chief of staff of the Metropolitan Governor's Office, noticed Emperor Su He's gesture.
He stood up and reported: "Your Majesty, Mr. Chu, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, has brought a piece of information about the situation in various European countries.
This intelligence shows that England, France, and Russia are united.
They prepared to push the Russian Army along Central Asia to attack the northwest region of the empire.
After analysis by the General Staff, Russia will definitely agree to the requests of England and France.
Russia adopted serfdom, and when they recruited soldiers, they recruited slaves.
With England and France helping Russia train officers, they could recruit a steady stream of armies to attack the northwest region of the empire.
Russia does not care about the casualties of its soldiers or the outcome of the war.
The benefits that England and France brought to Russia would inevitably exceed the benefits that Russia would lose if it failed in the war.
To put it another way, the interests of Russia’s upper-class nobility are far different from those of Russia’s lower-class serfs.
There is a saying that the Russian serf army has gray animals, and Russia is not worried about the casualties of the Russian army at all.
The Ottoman Empire and Russia competed for Crimea.
This war lasted for hundreds of years, and every once in a while the two countries would launch a war.
The war was large-scale and caused hundreds of thousands of casualties.
However, the two countries have no intention of stopping. It can be seen that these two countries do not care about the casualties of their troops in order to achieve their goals.
Taking all aspects into consideration, the empire must prepare in advance to deal with possible wars.
The General Staff predicts that this will happen in as little as seven months or as long as one or two years. "
Emperor Su He listened to Qu Tian's report, and he agreed with the conclusions drawn by the General Staff.
This war will definitely happen, and when it will officially begin depends on the speed of Russia's recruitment and how long it will take for the army to reach the front line.
Now, Russia can only transport troops from Europe to East Asia by crossing mountains and ridges on foot, and the marching speed is very slow.
Since they know that war will happen sooner or later, of course they must be fully prepared.
Emperor Su He said with a solemn expression: "The Great China Empire will never be afraid of war.
This war is inevitable, and we must be prepared for war.
The enemy can choose when to launch a war and when to stop the war, it all depends on our mood. "
Emperor Su He first set the main tone. The Great China Empire was actively preparing for war. This was not a militancy, but a forced response to war.
In the early days of the founding of the Great China Empire, wars were going on one after another, and newspapers had news of success all year long.
At that time, the whole court was dominated by war factions, and there was no room for the peace faction to survive.
As the large-scale wars in these years have basically ended, the Great China Empire has also entered a stage of recuperation.
There are gradually more and more advocates and factions in the court. These people are afraid that the war will destroy their bottles and jars.
The most extreme among them were even opposed to small-scale wars in overseas colonial expansion.
Emperor Su He didn't want to listen to their noise at all and directly decided the theme of this imperial meeting.
Governor Feng Sanqiu heard something beyond the meaning of Emperor Su He's words.
He immediately stood up and walked to the sand table opposite Emperor Suhe.
He took out several small flags and placed them in different positions.
"Your Majesty, the Governor's Office is preparing to mobilize three more armies to the northwest region.
The Fourth Army, the Seventh Army, the Thirteenth Army, and the Fifteenth Army are responsible for guarding it.
Five more cavalry divisions were transferred to fight against the Russian cavalry.
Central Asia has many plains, which is suitable for cavalry.
At the same time, let Lanzhou Dudu's Mansion and Xi'an Dudu's Mansion be prepared.
Once there are too many Russian troops, the front line will be more dangerous.
The troops in the rear can support the front line through the railway at any time.
The Royal Army of Great China is confident that it will annihilate all invading enemies. "
After Feng Sanqiu finished speaking, he moved the flag representing Russia with his hands.
“Your Majesty, the empire’s first priority is to build the main railway lines in the two northwest provinces.
The railway has now been built to Turpan.
As long as the imperial court can build the railway within a year.
Even if the Russian army arrived early, spring has just begun. When they arrive in Central Asia, winter is not far away.
From Russia to Central Asia, armies had difficulty getting supplies during the winter when heavy snow fell.
They will certainly not launch large-scale military operations in winter.
The key point now is the time it takes to build the railway. "
Han Youzhe, the commander of the Shaofu, was waiting nearby. He quickly promised: "Within one year, the Shaofu will definitely be able to build the railway to the two northwest provinces."
After listening, Feng Sanqiu nodded and said: "The Governor's Office has prepared three plans. If the railway can be completed on time, we will adopt the best plan.
No matter how you look at it, we can get one year, enough time to repair the railway.
As long as the railway is built and troops and supplies can be easily transported to the front line, this war will surely be won. "
Governor Feng Sanqiu confidently assured that the Royal Army of China will surely win this war.
After this military operation, a railway can be earned for the local area.
After this railway is built, it will definitely lose money.
As a result, the court's enthusiasm for investment was low.
A large amount of manpower and material resources have been invested in building the Shenyang-Guangzhou Railway and the Xurong-Rongji Railway, which are the backbone railway networks connecting wealthy areas.
Governor Feng Sanqiu finally put a small yellow flag where he was in Kazakh and other Central Asian nomadic tribes.
“Your Majesty, the Governor-General is prepared to take practical measures to capture these nomadic tribes before we go to war with Russia.
Russia also invaded here. We have been supporting the indigenous tribes here to fight against the Russian invasion.
But these people are all mud and cannot hold up the wall. The matchlock guns we supported in the past were actually resold by the tribal nobles to the Russian army.
We took this area, and the major cavalry divisions controlled this huge area.
That can threaten Russia's material transportation lines at all times.
This will add another layer of insurance to the war.
This is the overall strategy of the Metropolitan Government.
What the frontline can do depends on the ability of the commander of the army. "
Governor Feng Sanqiu retired after speaking. He repeatedly emphasized that the Royal Army of China must win.
He also threw away the blame he might have shouldered.
If the war is victorious, their ability to win decisively thousands of miles away will definitely earn them some military merit.
If an accident occurs in a war, it is entirely because of improper command by the frontline commander.
Emperor Su He looked at the situation map on the sand table, nodded and said: "The Governor's Office is confident, and I will fully support you.
The Metropolitan Governor's Office only asked for the construction of the railway, which was not too difficult. At least it was much less difficult than fighting for the army on the front line. "
Feng Sanqiu and other generals became confident when they heard what Emperor Su He said.
The Royal Army of Great China has experienced hundreds of battles and has strong logistical support. They can't find a reason for defeat.
The officials of the Metropolitan Governor's Office immediately had smiles on their faces, observing the expressions of other ministers.
Emperor Su He looked in the direction of the civil servant.
"This war is inevitable, and war is not just about the military, it is about the rise and fall of the Great China Empire.
Once this war fails, the empire will pay an extremely heavy price.
The whole court must work together to deal with this war. "
Prime Minister Wei Shiming immediately stood up and said: "Your Majesty, on behalf of the cabinet, I fully support the Dudu's war effort.
War has been related to money since ancient times, and the empire has a rich heritage, and now there is no shortage of money at all.
Last year's tax revenue has been calculated, and it exceeded 100 million taels of silver coins for the first time.
This is an appalling figure. In the late Ming Dynasty, tax revenue was only four million taels of silver.
The imperial court had enough money and did not need to issue bonds to raise military expenses.
It can also purchase a large number of new weapons for the military. "
Prime Minister Wei Shiming is very confident. Now the court is too wealthy and has no fear of a large war.
With the tax revenue already reaching 100 million taels of silver coins, it is still increasing every year.
The Great China Empire now has no fear of challenges from any country and will fight a long war.
The other ministers at the Imperial Council had heard that war was coming and were somewhat worried.
Knowing that the imperial court had strong troops and no shortage of money, many officials were full of confidence in this war.
Emperor Su He knew that tax revenue had exploded last year, especially the business tax that nearly doubled.
This was mainly due to the demand from overseas governor's offices and vassal states, which stimulated factories to produce massive amounts of products.
As industry and commerce prospered, the taxes collected by the court would inevitably increase sharply.
Emperor Su He said happily: "After the reports from the Governor's Office and the Cabinet, I am full of confidence in this war.
Dear friends, if you have any suggestions, you can also put them forward. I will adopt excellent suggestions. "
Emperor Su He's words were mainly addressed to the officials who were listening.
This is not the first time that the Royal Council has discussed this war.
What does the minister who often goes to Qianqing Palace think?
Emperor Su He already knew this.
This imperial meeting was held like a small-scale court meeting, and he wanted to hear some refreshing ideas.
Emperor Su He also wanted to dig out some talents among these people.
Many officials kept silent when they saw the elder in front.
They looked at each other, not daring to speak at this time.
Li Yan, the left minister of the Ministry of Industry, felt that this was an excellent opportunity for him to perform.
As an official of Prime Minister Wei Shiming's family, he knew a lot of inside information.
Li Yan stood up and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, I am the Left Minister of the Ministry of Industry and responsible for managing projects in various places.
With all due respect, even if all the railway construction teams in the country are mobilized, there is no way to build the northwest railway in one year.
Only the deserts and dune changes in the northwest region require long-term observation.
Otherwise, the newly laid railway will be buried by yellow sand in a few months.
In the northwest region, seven out of ten roads previously planned by the Ministry of Industry were buried by yellow sand.
The minister believes that there is a problem with the data obtained by the Metropolitan Government, or that they do not understand the difficulty of building railways in the northwest region.
This is not a problem that can be solved by using more workers.
I suggest not to place all your hopes of victory on the railway.
The imperial court should start transporting various supplies to the northwest front in batches from now on.
And build some repair shops and ammunition factories in Yinli Mansion and other places close to the front line, which can repair simple ordnance and process primary ammunition.
Even if transportation is cut off, supplies cannot be delivered.
The local area can also rely on these small factories to survive a difficult period. "
As soon as Li Yan said these words, he directly angered the Young Master Han Youzhe.
The officials of the Governor's Mansion also looked at Han Youzhe, the young man's order.
They had not considered before that the young master's order, Han Youzhe, was bragging.
Who could have dared to imagine that someone would brag in front of Emperor Su He at the imperial meeting.
Luo Zhe, the staff officer of the General Staff Department, stood up and asked: "Master Han, the order of the Shaofu, could you please explain why Master Li questioned?
Can the Northwest Railway be built on time without delaying military use? "
Han Youzhe, the commander of the Shaofu, said confidently: "Even in the southwest region where railways are extremely difficult to build, the construction speed is very fast after building railways in sections.
Our company under Shaofu has conducted on-site inspections in the northwest, and the terrain there is suitable for railway construction.
The railway construction company is owned by our Shaofu. How can we deceive ourselves? "
Han Youzhe, the commander of the Shaofu, gave detailed data to refute Li Yan's statement.
He only said a few words and felt that his back was soaked with cold sweat.
Li Yan suddenly laughed when he heard Han Youzhe tell the relevant data.
"Can I ask who collected this data? Master Han, look at the solidity of the foundation. Does it look like the data from the Shaanxi-Gansu region?
I even doubted that this person had not gone to the northwest at all.
Just make do with data from Xi'an and other places. "
Li Yan relied on his rich experience to directly point out the errors and omissions in Shaofu Ling's data.
Emperor Su He listened to the debate between the two sides, and he gradually favored Li Yan.
Even in later generations, the technology for building railways was extremely advanced.
Building railways in the northwest will also take a long time.
Emperor Su He previously believed that a large amount of manpower could shorten the construction time of the railway.
Now it seems that you can't be too anxious about everything.
Seeing the stalemate between the two parties, Emperor Su He immediately asked the Royal Telegraph Bureau to send telegrams directly to Yarkant and Xi'an, asking them to report local soil data.
The telegram was sent back shortly after, and Li Yan's data was more consistent.
Emperor Su He looked at the Young Master Han Youzhe with deep meaning. The Young Master he promoted did not seem very reliable.
】
Seeing this situation, the Metropolitan Governor's Office agreed with Li Yan's statement and stocked up some supplies to prepare for emergencies.
The railway to the northwest continued to be built. No one knew how long this war would last.
After Li Yan set an example, many officials put forward their own suggestions.
They made an effective supplement to this war.
Emperor Su He was listening to the suggestions of these officials.
Eunuch Zhou Fangzhi's face changed drastically. He ran to Emperor Su He and whispered: "Your Majesty, something happened in Cining Palace."
Emperor Su He's expression changed, and he quickly announced the end of the imperial meeting.
The Governor's Office and the Cabinet made war preparations in accordance with the consensus reached at this imperial meeting.
