After the two generals from Heilongjiang and Jilin left, the emperor breathed a sigh of relief.
There is no doubt that Jilin always develops the fastest, while Heilongjiang can only rely on military reclamation.
On the cabinet side, Wang Yingxiong, who succeeded Zhao Shu as the chief minister, was old-minded. He looked at the opening and hurriedly came forward to ask for an audience.
"Let him in!"
Zhu Yixi waved her hand, and Liu Afu hurriedly went out.
The emperor had different ways of getting along with each of his chief ministers.
Zhao Shu respected him with a little respect. After all, he was both a teacher and a friend, and he was at the level of a leader.
Wang Yingxiong came to seek refuge when he was in Sichuan, and the emperor's attitude was relatively mild. There was no respect, but there was mutual respect.
Not to mention anything else, his age was enough to soften the emperor's attitude.
Wang Yingxiong, who had gray hair, was in good spirits. He walked slowly but firmly: "Your Majesty, the land in northern Liaoning is now on track."
"Brother Thirteen——"
For Zhu Jing, the emperor had a compensatory mentality.
"snort--"
Zhu Yixi had no choice but to bow his hands and said: "In the future, you must keep a low profile. As a royal, you must be diligent and thrifty. Extravagance is not the way of a saint."
"Let Zhu Jing come to see me."
"This can't be done. If my father finds out, he will definitely scold me again."
"My requirements are not high. I just need to strive to capture Annan in three years."
"The Han and Tang dynasties are not as good as your Majesty." Wang Yingxiong shook his head: "Northern Liaoning was just a prison in the Tang Dynasty, and was even occupied by the Bohai Kingdom. Now the imperial court has a general's mansion, with civilian officials and pastoral guards, which can be said to be stronger than many."
"Is this all right? It saves you all the trouble."
"This time the troops are dispatched, the money and food will be provided from internal funds. The deposits of the Ministry of Household Affairs will not be moved at all, and they are not included in the budget prepared by the Ministry of Finance."
"good."
"yes!"
Not long after I arrived, someone announced that King Qin was visiting.
For such a large amount of money, the emperor had nothing else to spend. One million yuan was enough for the entire harem every year, and the rest was left over.
Zhu Yixi stood up directly and walked in front of him. She looked at the head that was taller than her and felt deeply for a moment.
Hearing this request, Zhu Jing smiled bitterly.
As soon as he asked the question, he felt a little stupid.
This is a map that the emperor regarded as a treasure.
The princess's mansion, the prince's mansion, twenty or thirty children, the cost involved is hard to measure.
But in this case, considering the cost of suppression in the later stage, it would be impossible to get it without tens of millions of dollars.
"That's right, you are here to lead the troops."
Of course, the Western Regions are different.
The emperor took three steps and two steps together, pointed to the position below the Champa and said: "This is the foothold that will be prepared soon."
The emperor shook his head and suddenly turned around and said.
Watching his old figure leave, the emperor drank up the tea brought by Liu Afu in one gulp, still feeling energetic.
"I was confused at the time. I could only hesitate for a while and chose Annan."
"really--"
The emperor continued: "Not to mention hardship, the elite soldiers under your command are all from the Beijing camp. Moreover, I still ask the Nanhai Navy to help you. Whether it is soldiers, horses, money, or food supplies, you will not be short."
Therefore, considering the cost of war, small-scale war is most suitable.
The emperor nodded and showed a smile: "You are older than King Qin, so he will listen to what you say."
"What do you mean?" Zhu Jing understood, but felt a little unbelievable.
"Are you talking about Annan?"
Wang Yingxiong sighed, shook his head, and left.
Coupled with the abnormal climate in the past two years, it will naturally lead to poor harvests in these barren lands, which will require transfer payments.
Moreover, the people of Guangdong and Guangxi will also bear the cost of the army's corvee service, and the local vitality will be severely damaged, which will not recover for less than ten years.
Although this flattery was a bit stiff, Zhu Yixi accepted it and was very happy.
The customs here refers to the water gate above the canal. In the past, this was the main source of internal funds for the emperors of the Ming Dynasty. Later, Zhu Yixi took a liking to the customs and replaced it.
"At the same time, this is also a good opportunity for you to make meritorious deeds."
Even though he only wore a baronet, he had no complaints over the years, which was especially appreciated by the emperor.
Where's the time?
Zhu Jing hurriedly bowed to greet him: "Your Highness, just call me Ningzhi."
The situation there is complicated. In order to avoid long nights and many dreams, we can only quickly turn it into a county.
As Wang Yingxiong gets older, he becomes more cautious and tactful.
Zhu Jing was a man of many talents, and he immediately knew that His Highness the King of Qin was impatient.
The total income from other royal estates, shops, sugar, etc. is about 5 million, of which sugar accounts for the majority. The plantations, sugar shacks, and the opening of the mainland market, the annual income is 2 million.
In this case, it is logical to build a Chengde villa.
"If you still can't win it, then it's really useless."
After conquering Annan and establishing a vassal state for the King of Qin, a count would definitely be able to kill him.
The meaning of this sentence is that it is not enough to retain all the four provinces for the future summer harvest. The court must also transfer payment and allocate money and grain from the Ministry of Household Affairs.
In other words, he hoped that the emperor would not take risks as he had done before, but should remain cautious and not act too hastily.
In the fourteenth year of Shaowu's reign, customs revenue reached 6 million yuan, which was also a record high.
"Then gradually go north, eat away at the city of Champa, and then go north again to swallow up the Ruan family and the Zheng family. By then, the Qin State will be born."
After all, although sea transportation is fast, the risks are also high, and there is no safety inland.
Advising is indeed a technical job.
"Three years is a bit tight, but we can win it in the end."
"Isn't this back court too conspicuous?"
"After all, Mr. Wangge is different from Mr. Zhao. He is really capable of angering the emperor..." Liu Afu said cooperatively while bringing another cup of tea.
Suddenly, the emperor asked.
Suddenly, he understood that Wang Yingxiong had planned from the beginning to use the emperor's internal funds instead of using the bank's banknotes.
At this time, Zhu Yixi suddenly realized: "What happened? I was tricked."
After the household department is divided into three parts, the finance department is responsible for specific taxation and the budget for the coming year, the household department is responsible for warehousing and account collection, and the civil affairs department is responsible for household registration and other matters.
"His Royal Highness King Qin, please come quickly."
If such a huge amount of income were known to the civil servants, they would probably keep an eye on it every day and find ways to drain it.
"Do you want to make meritorious deeds?"
Customs alone earned 15 million yuan last year. This is such a huge figure.
King Qin smiled and said: "Brother Thirteen, we have such a relationship, we don't want to see each other outside."
"Your Majesty, I am already thirty years old."
But doing some things too hastily can be counterproductive.
"Sure enough, with a little money, the civil servants will know."
Zhu Jing was silent at first, and then her face was full of excitement: "Don't worry."
What a great bunch of guys.
There is no way, ambitious monarchs in ancient times basically like to take risks and get everything done in a short time. For example, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty wanted to capture the Xiongnu in his lifetime; Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty wanted to quickly eliminate Goguryeo...
"Why?"
"Then, my father talked about the war in Annan."
The internal funds and the Ministry of Household Affairs are two separate systems, and the income of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is even more closely linked. If it is easily leaked, basically few will survive.
After Zhu Jing made her solemn promise, she returned home again worried.
The emperor frowned.
"The other generals will inevitably have their hands tied when the time comes. Only if you go will you make them obedient. There will be no constraints and the war will proceed smoothly."
"I see."
After entering the seat and serving tea, King Qin said calmly: "My father told me before, should I stay in the capital and be a carefree prince, or should I go to Annan and be a powerful and powerful prince?"
A powerful vassal king."
The emperor thought in his mind: "It seems that their coveting of the customs is not just a matter of time."
"It doesn't take three to five years. One year is enough."
But what he said was that Wang Yingxiong's focus was not on money and food, but on gently admonishing him to be cautious.
Soon, I arrived at the study room.
After all, there will be a lot of consumption in the future. For example, if the prince becomes a vassal, his son must provide money, right?
If a daughter wants to get married, the dowry must not be small.
If it was not beyond his expectation, the emperor took the initiative to leak the matter.
After a while, Liu Afu sent some documents over.
Excessive military occupation is the best way.
"Since you think about it, it will be easy to handle."
"I never thought that it would be Brother Thirteen who went with me. This must have happened naturally."
"Since Your Majesty insists on doing this, I have nothing to say -"
There is a very obvious screen here, which you can see directly when you walk in.
"But His Majesty took it one step at a time, never rashly setting up prefectures and counties, and overdoing it with the general's office. He is really a sage, and the wise kings of ancient times are not as good as..."
Zhu Cunzhang shouted very affectionately, with the intimacy of an adult at the age of sixteen.
Faced with such flattery, Zhu Jing was neither humble nor overbearing, and said with a smile: "Although I have little talent and knowledge, I have experienced it. Your Majesty asked me to capture Saigon first, and then move forward step by step to capture the city."
In other words, unless there is some secret matter that requires confidentiality, ordinary news will spread quickly in the palace.
"Although Annan once went out independently during the Xuande period, his armor, firearms, or warriors' prowess cannot compare to ours."
If it was Zhao Shu, he would directly lay out the carriage and horses, explain the pros and cons, and then let the emperor choose.
"But -" Wang Yingxiong stopped talking.
This is an all-time high.
Zhu Jing was stunned and immediately replied decisively: "Of course I do."
Good guy, you went through such a big detour just for a little money and food.
Although Zhu Jing was younger than the emperor, she was nearly thirty years old at this time. She had a beard and looked very mature and steady.
In one word, border army.
"really--"
"Yes!" The emperor sighed, and said with some excitement: "If things go on like this, the imperial court will add two new provinces, and the day when the Han and Tang Dynasties will be far away is not far away."
After seeing those numbers, Zhu Yixi shook her head helplessly.
In fact, it is very simple to capture Annan in a short time.
Liu Afu was stunned and said hurriedly: "There is no big expense, as always, except that this year, the Ministry of Internal Affairs mobilized tens of thousands of people to build the Chengde Palace and spent millions of yuan..."
Moreover, in the feudal era, the economy was unstable, so leave more money to your children and grandchildren for emergencies.
The total amount is about 20 million yuan.
"Who says it's not the case?" the emperor said angrily: "Although Mr. Zhao is also a tough guy, he's not very irritating, but this guy is so full of tricks that he makes people extremely irritated."
In the past few years, the income of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has been rising steadily, making the emperor a little frightened.
Just like the traditional Chinese, the emperor liked to save it for other uses.
He didn't care about this either.
Without it, the Ministry of Internal Affairs runs the business, and the people who manage the accounts are basically domestic servants. Once it is known, the emperor does not need to take action at all, and the eunuchs can take care of him.
Zhu Yixi nodded: "I believe you, but the first batch can only give you 5,000 people. After you capture Champa, I will add more troops to you. Take your time."
The 50,000-strong army rushed down at once, like tigers descending from the mountain. Annan's few people were absolutely no longer a problem.
Zhu Yixi fell silent.
It is conceivable that with such a busy customs and several times the number of ships, there must be more taxes.
"Let's go to the study room."
Soon, Zhu Jing came to the palace in confusion.
The emperor waved his hand: "I repeat, this time it is not for occupation, but to naturalize the vassal state and save the people of Annan from fire and water. This is what the Celestial Kingdom should do."
Before he knew it, he was thirty-six years old.
Zhu Yixi was annoyed: "Stop talking, don't you just want to talk about money and food?"
Liu Afu even took off his coat for the emperor to avoid panicking due to the heat.
"but--"
He leads the way and walks ahead.
"Go and ask the Ministry of Finance for the specific amount of last year's tariffs."
Zhu Jing followed suit, her mind full of confusion, but her steps were not too late and she followed closely.
Suddenly, the emperor asked an inexplicable question.
Of course, Zhu Yixi was looking for trouble for himself. Under normal circumstances, the Ministry of Revenue is responsible for repairing the mansion.
"What's a little money? I'm rich in the world and have millions of people, so what's the difference?"
Wouldn't this be a slap in the face?
After hearing the emperor's words, Wang Yingxiong's expression did not change: "I shouldn't say anything about the Annan matter, but we can learn from the past and learn from the mistakes behind us. Your Majesty——"
As he said that, he put his arms in and looked extremely affectionate.
I summarized part of it earlier, and sure enough, everything was just for setting the stage. After the turning point here, Wang Yingxiong said:
"According to the words of the Ministry of Household Affairs, Suiyuan, Anxi, Gansu, and Ningxia will have a hard time raising money and food for themselves this spring. At the same time, the imperial court will have to allocate three million silver yuan in order for them to..."
After the burden of water transportation was eliminated, the thousands of miles of canals have now become the fastest and most efficient north-south passage, with countless ships traveling between them.
But if you are too anxious to eat hot tofu, three years will become one year, which is simply fatal.
Therefore, taking steps step by step and fighting steadily are the principles he pursues.
After encountering a soft nail, King Qin was not annoyed and continued to smile: "This time we send out troops, we can give priority to the selection of soldiers and horses. Brother Thirteen is very skilled in the practical affairs of the army. This must be done by you."
"Don't worry, Your Highness." Zhu Jing said seriously: "The soldiers I will pick must be elite soldiers who have experienced hundreds of battles, and I will never allow others to fish in troubled waters."