Roads and roads are different.
Zhu Yunwen waved and asked Gu Sanshen, who was walking over, "Are you all ready?"
Gu Sanshen said solemnly: "We are ready."
Zhu Yunwen nodded slightly, turned sideways and said to Huang Zicheng, Zheng Ci, Xie Jin and others: "In that case, let's see why I want to build a concrete road."
Several villagers stepped forward, took down the straw mats on the last section of the concrete road, and cleaned it, revealing a clean road surface.
Huang Zicheng, Zheng Ci and others followed Zhu Yunwen onto the concrete road. Zheng Ci stepped on it hard and said in surprise: "This road is so smooth, there are no potholes at all."
Huang Zicheng bent down, touched the road with his hand, and agreed: "It is indeed neat, even a little smooth. But..."
It is impossible to convince the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development to allocate funds for concrete roads just because they are smooth and flat.
Zhu Yunwen didn't say anything, but just nodded to Gu Sanshen. Gu Sanshen arranged for someone to pour the water on the concrete road. Huang Zicheng, Zheng Ci and others had to step aside.
The water followed the force and flowed to the dirt road on the other side. The dirt road gradually became watery and became muddy. On the other hand, the concrete road, except for being a little moist, did not change at all, and did not even retain much water. .
"Your Majesty, is the middle of the road too high?"
Xie Jin couldn't help but ask when he saw that the splashed water flowed to both sides and there was almost no water in the middle.
Zhu Yunwen nodded slightly and said: "It's a very small slope, and you won't notice it if you walk on it. Huang Shangshu, compare it left and right, what do you think?"
Huang Zicheng compared the dirt road with the concrete road. The pros and cons were obvious at a glance, but Huang Zicheng still shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, although the official road will be difficult to walk when it rains, I still think it is inappropriate to build this concrete road because it costs so much. .”
Zhu Yunwen looked at Huang Zicheng, sighed, and said: "It seems that Aiqing doesn't want to pay the money anymore, so let's go to the third trial."
After Gu Sanyan understood it, he arranged for someone to notify him.
Huang Zicheng, Zheng Ci and others turned around and saw forty heavy cavalry appearing not far away, fully equipped and walking over vigorously.
The twenty-heavy cavalrymen walked on the muddy road, and from time to time the horses would bend their legs. If the cavalrymen were not good at driving and the speed was slow, the horses would fall over.
The other twenty heavy cavalry stepped on the concrete road, and the sound of the footsteps was pleasant, neat, and not messy at all. If the concrete road was not short, they would not be able to fly out.
The people from the Military War Bureau pushed over four heavy artillery pieces, but two of the artillery pieces got stuck in the mud. Several people shouted and pushed hard to get out of the way. Looking back, they saw that there were two more deep cannons on the road. The deep ruts make it even more difficult for pedestrians or cannons to follow.
On the other hand, on the concrete road, the artillery can be transported easily. After passing through, there is not even a trace left.
Huang Zicheng's face became solemn. Although he was only in charge of household affairs, he also understood the importance of smooth roads.
Roads are needed for the delivery of imperial decrees, roads are needed for messengers to deliver reports, roads are needed for people and businessmen, and roads are also needed for military mobilization!
Whether it is official roads or local roads, they are all dirt roads. When it rains or snows, the roads are no longer smooth. It is difficult to transmit government orders, make it difficult for envoys to travel, it is difficult for people and businesses to move, and it is more difficult to mobilize the army.
This concrete road changed not only a road, but also the court's control over the local area. If there were problems in the local area, the court would rely on such convenience to
Tao said that control should be carried out in the shortest possible time, whether it is a government order or the deployment of troops, and it will not be delayed due to weather.
Xie Jin, Zheng Ci and others looked at Huang Zicheng and remained silent. They also understood that the cost of this concrete road was high, but its effect could not be ignored. From the overall perspective, the investment was definitely worth it.
Huang Zicheng looked at Zhu Yunwen and saluted: "I just want to ask, how many years will this concrete road last?"
Zhu Yunwen knew that Huang Zicheng had made a choice, so he replied seriously: "According to my estimation, there will be no problem in thirty years. If you maintain and repair it carefully, it can still last in fifty years."
There is absolutely no possibility of overloading on the concrete roads of the Ming Dynasty. The most important thing is horses pulling some goods, occasionally running heavy cavalry, and operating artillery. Under such ideal conditions, the possibility of external force damage to the concrete roads is minimal.
It shouldn't be a problem if it lasts for decades.
Huang Zicheng heard Zhu Yunwen's answer and said solemnly: "Concrete roads are becoming popular. The Ministry of Household Affairs is willing to spend one million silver taels every year to fund new roads."
With a smile on his face, Zhu Yunwen said, "Huang Aiqing, I am not building roads just for the sake of building roads."
"I know that the emperor has also considered the issue of transporting troops."
Huang Zicheng replied.
Zhu Yunwen shook his head and said: "Things are not that simple. Let's go back to the palace and make detailed plans."
Wuying Palace.
Zhu Yunwen unfolded a map of the Ming Dynasty, pointed in the direction of Peiping, and said: "What I really want to open up is this route, which starts from the capital and goes all the way north, passing through Fengyang, Xuzhou, Kaifeng, Jinan, and Zhending to Peiping. With Peiping as the center, we will open up Datong, Taiyuan, Yan'an, Lanzhou to the west, and Guangning, Daning, Liaodong and other places to the east."
"All important border defense towns should be connected by concrete roads. No matter it rains or snows, they can be quickly supported to increase the strength of border defense. Under normal circumstances, the transportation of materials is relatively easy. Once encountering a defensive battle, food and grass will not be exhausted."
Xie Jin looked at Zhu Yunwen's majestic road construction blueprint and couldn't help but ask: "Your Majesty, since you attach great importance to the north, why did you build the road from the capital to Suzhou and Hangzhou in the first place? Wouldn't it be safer to build it directly to the north?"
Huang Zicheng and others also looked at Zhu Yunwen with the same doubts.
The emperor's construction of concrete roads seems to place more emphasis on military deployment and border defense. If this is the case, then he should concentrate his manpower, material and financial resources to fully build concrete roads to the north.
To the south is Suzhou and Hangzhou. The only threat faced by those two places is Japanese pirates at sea. But no matter how much trouble the Japanese pirates make, they can't go to Hangzhou. Is building a road to the south the opposite direction?
Zhu Yunwen knocked on the table and said: "Concrete roads are a new thing, and we will inevitably encounter some problems during the construction process. We need time to accumulate experience, and we also need to train more concrete construction workers. As the folk proverb goes, sharpening the knife Don’t miss out on chopping firewood. With the manpower and experience in the future, we can definitely bloom more and start construction in various places at the same time.”
"I have drawn up a five-year infrastructure plan and hope that the imperial court can complete the construction of concrete roads from the capital to Suhang and Beijing to Peking within five years."
"Five years?!"
The expressions of Xie Jin, Huang Zicheng and others changed. This plan can be said to be almost crazy.
Putting aside the roads from the capital to Suzhou and Hangzhou, the distance from the capital to Peking alone is more than two thousand miles. It also needs to connect major cities in series, which is at least another two thousand five hundred miles.
On average, five hundred miles will be built in a year. Specifically, it will take more than one mile every day.
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The weather is not suitable for construction. During normal construction, at least nearly two miles of road must be paved every day. How much manpower and material resources are needed, and how much financial resources are needed to support it?
"Your Majesty, there is something wrong with this plan. In my opinion, it can be extended to seven or even ten years."
As the minister of the Ministry of Industry, Zheng Ci knew that large-scale construction would require a lot of labor. There would not be much problem if hundreds or even thousands of people worked together. However, if the supervisors pursued speed too much and made the people work day and night, causing civil unrest, then the problem would be Big.
Don’t be too harsh on progress.
Zhu Yunwen knew this, but he also knew that time waits for no one. Building a road to Peking within five years was a bit exaggerated. However, Zhu Yunwen was not a fantasy five-year plan, but the result of serious thinking.
There is no shortage of manpower in Ming Dynasty, and basic construction materials are available all over the country.
There were people, materials, and the imperial government took the lead, so it still blossomed everywhere. Construction started in towns along the way at the same time. Even if it took two hundred days a year, five hundred miles of road could be built in a year.
The Ming Dynasty was not a construction enterprise of later generations. Dozens of workers built a road, drove the machines, and repaired it in a few months. Although the Ming Dynasty did not have mechanical conveniences, it used the tactics of a sea of people and gathered tens of thousands of people to build several roads. Still no problem.
"The five-year infrastructure plan cannot be changed. I will draft a charter on how to control the construction period. In fact, I have two other considerations for building concrete roads."
Zhu Yunwen sat down and motioned for Xie Jin and others to sit down.
"Your Majesty, apart from border defense and transportation convenience, I really can't think of any other considerations."
Zheng Ci said bluntly.
Zhu Yunwen smiled indifferently and said: "You are in charge of the Ministry of Industry, so it is normal that you can't think of so many things. I have two other concerns. One is the employment issue of the people."
"Your Majesty, what is employment?"
Xie Jin asked with a frown.
Zhu Yunwen glanced at the confused people, thought for a moment, and found that employment seemed to be a later vocabulary, and then explained: "Ji means ie; industry means livelihood. The meaning of employment is to engage in livelihood work to support the family."
"I see."
Xie Jin nodded and said clearly: "When the people have a livelihood, they will have income. Although the court consumes silver coins, the silver coins flow into the hands of the people, and the people will spend money to buy everything. When the business is prosperous, the court taxes will also be increased." Will increase. Does the emperor want to build roads to promote the prosperity of the people and increase the profits of hundreds of merchants? "
"What Jie Aiqing said is absolutely true."
Zhu Yunwen praised Xie Jin, looked at Huang Zicheng, and said: "Although the Ministry of Household Affairs will spend a lot of silver, in the long run, the court will recover the silver through commercial tax and agricultural tax."
Huang Zicheng relaxed. In the long run, the current investment is not considered a loss.
"What is the second level of consideration for the Emperor?"
Huang Zicheng asked expectantly.
The smile at the corner of Zhu Yunwen's mouth slowly disappeared, his face became serious, and he said slowly: "Temple, Taoist temple, gentry, and vassal king, relying on their financial resources, purchased land on a large scale, and the national policy of curbing land and annexing it became a futile idea. The people sold their land, Although it has gained huge profits now, in the future, it has lost its foundation. In less than three years, Ming Dynasty will have a group of tenant farmers, which I don’t want to see.”
"But what can the court do? It strictly prohibits them from purchasing land? The land of temples and Taoist temples also says that I can order them to reserve part of their land and distribute the other land to the people. But what about the land of the gentry and the land of the feudal kings? What will they do with it? When purchasing land legally, the court cannot take it by force, right?"
