Ding Kui opened the window and felt the cold wind blowing on his face, unaware that winter had already entered.
"I didn't expect that Shaodian Kingdom would be reduced to spending money to buy Yipin Gong. Our country has entered a severe winter and cannot wait any longer." He had no luck in fighting off the cold.
Mu Heng frowned and said, "We can find a way to veto that will."
"No!" Ding Kui looked back at Mu Heng, "We can object to convening a temporary meeting of nobles, but we cannot clearly oppose the decree."
Mu Heng was silent.
"Why?" Liang Chong said anxiously, "The eldest princess can unite with Prince Yinsha to oppose spending money to promote the title. We must put pressure on Zhenjing City."
"Then we've fallen into a trap." Mu Heng looked much older in an instant, "Zhenjing City is short of money, and we are not rich either. The small and medium-sized nobles are no longer an insignificant group. The young master is right to have concerns."
Liang Chong understood, his face turned ugly, and he looked at Ding Kui: "Then what's the difference between you and Shaodian?"
Ding Kui stood in front of the window, letting the cold wind hit his back, and his long temples fluttered in the wind, "In terms of purpose, there is no difference between him and me. We both want to unify the country and put the kingdom back on track; in terms of means, we both It’s different. Take this time, he wants to use the nobles temporarily, but I hope for a long-term and stable policy.”
Seeing that Liang Chong's expression did not change, he continued: "Donating money can be a kind of merit, as long as there are proper regulations and management, and donations cannot be turned into business, why can't we accept it?
War merit is applicable to times of war, while donation merit is applicable to peace times. As long as it is helpful to the country and the people, we have no reason to refuse. I object to the Zi family's promotion to a first-class official because their donations are too small. If the amount is large enough to quell civil strife, I will agree."
Liang Chong fell into deep thought and needed to digest Ding Kui's words.
"Effective management, fair assessment, value comparison, not bad! It's a good idea." Mu Heng summarized Ding Kui's meaning.
"But how can merchants and nobles be confused?" Liang Chong was worried that all nobles would become merchants.
"If someone is like me and builds a large number of factories, feeds a large number of workers, and makes people in an area live a good life, then does he qualify to become a respected noble?"
Ding Kui knew that it was difficult for traditional nobles to accept it, but the common people and noble vassals like Mu Heng hoped to have another way to advance to the nobility.
"All nobles want to make money, but what about businessmen? Who will train officials for the country?" Liang Chong is a representative of the traditional nobles.
"This involves management issues, and money is not that easy to make. As long as we prevent nobles from using unfair means to make money, use the principle of fair competition to dissuade some nobles from thinking, and then use value comparison to filter, we can prevent all nobles from going into business. Matter." Mu Heng immediately drafted some regulations based on Ding Kui's ideas.
"Mu Lao is indeed very experienced. I haven't thought of that much. These points hit the mark and are feasible!" Ding Kui was glad to have called Mu Heng.
"Furthermore, we have not abolished the title of war meritorious service, nor have we canceled the assessment of officials. You can still obtain noble status through traditional channels. The new policy will not damage the foundation of our country." Mu Heng became increasingly clear.
"According to what you say, we should support Shaodianshi's will, or at worst remind him to solve management problems." Liang Chong's ideas are difficult to change at once.
"The biggest problem is that it is the Zi family who controls the government of Zhenjing City. Zipi promotes this matter for personal gain. There is no way to maintain a fair and just attitude from the beginning. The road will go more and more crooked in the future, which may eventually shake the foundation of the kingdom. This This is also the difference between me and Shaodian."
Ding Kui called Liang Chong over and wanted to convince the representatives of the traditional aristocracy. He had to convince those around him first before convincing others, otherwise his policy would not be implemented.
Liang Chong fell into deep thought again.
"I plan to help Ruan Jizong, Mo Ju, Qingyang Zi and Yi Sheng implement their titles as soon as possible." Ding Kui suddenly raised this matter, which seemed to have nothing to do with Shaodianshi's will.
"Wonderful!" Mu Heng saw the ingenuity in it.
"This subordinate agrees." Liang Chong forced a smile. He also saw Ding Kui's intention, but was not satisfied with the possible subsequent actions.
"Put the nobles aside for now. We will have time to discuss it later. We can't let Shaodianshi continue to fool around." Ding Kui didn't plan to convince Liang Chong at once.
"That's right!" Liang Chong perked up, "The first batch of students in the military academy are of high quality and need practical combat experience. They can start wars in a short period of time and can increase their growth. They will graduate by the middle of next year at the latest. "
"But Hengfu City has just launched the plan to build a magic tower, and the funds of the Ministry of Revenue are not enough." Mu Heng did not want to start a war.
"Money is not a problem. Someone will send money soon, and the equipment of the Nineteenth Legion will be available. At the end of the year, a group of new recruits will complete training. The National Guard Army will be supplemented. Now it is short of a fighter." The bellicosity in Ding Kui's body factors become active.
"The fighter planes are coming soon, either by the end of the year or early next year." Liang Chong said half of the story, but not the other half.
Mu Heng had a question mark on his forehead, but Ding Kui understood, "Well, it depends on your country's patience."
"Food is also a big problem. There are too many people pouring into our territory. The food we grabbed from Beibei County has been exhausted. The new harvest is only enough for next year. There is no surplus food in the granaries everywhere for the war."
What Mu Heng said is also true. The grain harvested this year and purchased from abroad are just enough to last until next year's autumn harvest. The reserves for just one year have not yet reached a safe level.
"There are no stocks in the counties near us. Unless we can capture Nanjing quickly, we will all be hungry next year." He did not think we could capture the city before next year's autumn harvest.
"Buy!" Ding Kui gritted his teeth and said, "Meng and Ji have reached peace talks, and there is a surplus of military rations. Spend more money to buy!"
"The Ministry of Household Affairs has no money." Mu Heng glanced at Liang Chong, "Unless we encourage private donations."
"No!" Liang Chong objected immediately, "At least not now."
Ding Kui also looked at Liang Chong and said: "The newly arrived nobles from Hailin Prefecture need a large number of houses and rented fields. Think of a way to let them rent more for a long time."
Liang Chong shook his head: "That's not enough!"
"How about borrowing some from them?" Mu Heng came up with an idea.
"Borrow?" Ding Kui was suddenly entranced. Mu Heng and Liang Chong wisely closed their mouths and did not interrupt his train of thought.
"Yes! I can pay the national debt!" Ding Kui thought for a moment, then realized it was a bit cold and turned around to close the window.
"What are national bonds?" Mu Heng and Liang Chong asked at the same time. There are no banks in the Shenyuan world, and banks only lend money to external parties without interest on deposits. How can they understand financial products such as bonds?
"To put it simply, national debt means that the government borrows money from the private sector with a credit guarantee. To put it bluntly, I want to borrow money and repay the principal and interest within the specified time. Anyone can lend to me." Ding Kui explained as simply as possible.
"Use the court's credit guarantee? It's not impossible. This is equivalent to the future tax revenue spent by the court. It's a good idea. How much interest will you pay?" Mu Heng has political experience and should respond faster.
"The annual interest rate is about five percent." Ding Kui searched his past life memory and found that he had never bought a national bond in his previous life, so he had to give the number from his impression.
"Five percent is a bit low." Liang Chong didn't understand national debt, but he knew how to borrow money. Noble families often lent money, but the interest rates were much higher.
"Be content. The court will definitely repay the money. There is no risk in this kind of loan. Your money will not increase if you leave it at home or in a bank. You can earn a quarter of your money by lending me money in five years. Are you willing to lend it to me or leave it at home? ?”
Liang Chong thought about it seriously and replied: "Borrow it! Of course I borrow it."
"Lending to people doing business may bring more interest, but the higher the amount, the greater the risk. The young master is right. When the court lends money, the risk is almost zero. This is a business that is sure to make money without losing money. I believe there will be Many people are willing to borrow it." Mu Heng himself wanted to borrow it.
Gold coins won't lay eggs if you keep them at home. If you lend them to Ding Kui, you will definitely earn interest, but if you do business, there is a risk of losing money.
"Well, for the first time, book-entry treasury bonds can be issued to the public for unlimited subscription. The total amount is five million gold coins. The term is five years and the annual interest is 5%. The principal and interest will be repaid in one lump sum upon maturity. "Ding Kui decided to issue national debt.
"Everyone will be afraid when they hear about war. If we lose, won't we lose all our money?" Liang Chong is accustomed to thinking about defeat.
"Who said I borrowed money to fight the war?" Ding Kui asked back, and Liang Chong was stunned on the spot.
"Haha, yes, the imperial court can borrow money to build the magic tower. The people of Nanqiu County and those doing business in Nanqiu County will definitely be willing to borrow this money. Five million is too little, at least ten million is the starting point." Mu Heng is indeed worthy of it. Old and cunning.
"You don't have to pay it back. I borrowed 10 million gold coins and I have to pay back 2.5 million. It's a bit stressful." The more Ding Kui thought about it, the more heartbroken he became.
"To take over the entire Nanma Prefecture within five years, more than two million is nothing. Don't you still want to set up a gold bank? Five million is not enough." Mu Heng has been helping his son handle the affairs of the household department recently.
"Okay, just ten million gold coins." Ding Kui found that he was getting poorer and poorer.
There are too many places where money needs to be spent. The Magic Tower is a bottomless pit, the arsenal is burning money every day, the Security Bureau is desperately needing money to expand, and war preparations are on the small side.
"Have you decided on your combat objectives?" Liang Chong brought the topic back on track.
"The Tenth Legion has arrived, which means Shaodian wanted to destroy me, so I don't need to be polite to him. The purpose of the next battle is to destroy the Tenth Legion and pacify Nanzhao Prefecture."
Ding Kui unfolded the military map of Nanma Prefecture and put a cross on Nanjing City.
"The first phase of the mission is to capture the city of Nanjing."
…
Ji Yu did not choose to go to Juyang City by boat, but took the road that Shao Dian Luan took home, and arrived at Juyang City half a month after Shao Dian Luan arrived home.
Dou Xiao led a special battle group to greet the prince of the Tongbei Empire in Qinglan City. Its specifications were not much inferior to Ji Chan. A special railcar train carried Ji Yu and his party from Qinglan City to Juyang City.
Ji Yu arrived at the Juyang City terminal and saw Ding Kui with a signature smile on his face as soon as he got off the bus. "Your territory is really a wonderful place." He took the initiative to step forward and hug Ding Kui.