As soon as Deng Xide said these words, Li Xuan knew what they were paying attention to. Didn't they just want to continue the Western Expedition and then invade Eastern Europe?
So Li Xuan just opened his eyes slightly, and then said: "In the next few years, we will carry out the second round of water conservancy facility construction, agricultural reform, and the second round of railway construction!"
Li Xuan's words sounded to Deng Xide as if he just said he had no money, so that he could avoid talking!
Although this result had been expected, Deng Xide was still very disappointed. The army had been preparing for the third Western Expedition since last year.
Various combat plans are already perfect. With just one order, more than 150,000 troops can cross the Ural River and enter the Volga River.
The battle plan was prepared, the troops were ordered, and there was no shortage of generals.
The only thing missing is war funds!
After all, when the cannon goes off, there is a thousand taels of gold!
No matter how powerful the army is, it cannot launch such a large-scale campaign without money.
But just when Deng Xide thought there was no hope, Li Xuan suddenly said: "But the tax department said that next year's income should increase significantly, and by then they should be able to give you tens of millions more for the army."
war expenses."
"But it's only 50 million at most, no more!" Li Xuan knew that whether it was the army or the navy, the lion always spoke loudly, and would never be satisfied.
So let me explain first, this is just 50 million war expenses, if there is more, there will be no more!
After Deng Xide heard this, he rolled his eyes and said, "Is this fifty million a year?"
If it's just a year's combat funding, then Deng Xide doesn't care. At worst, he needs funding over several years.
But Li Xuan cut off his illusion: "Fifty million at a time, and I will get the Volga and Don rivers by then!"
At the same time, Li Xuan also pointed to the map of Eastern Europe on the table, and then pointed to the area near the junction of the Volga and Don rivers: "At least control this Tsaritsyn, so that we can build a canal here, along with the Volga and Don rivers.
, and then connect the East China Sea and the Black Sea."
"As long as this place is conquered and the canal is dug, the army will be able to directly receive supplies from the sea in subsequent operations in Eastern Europe, especially in the Don and Volga river basins!"
When Deng Xide heard what Emperor Sheng said, he looked embarrassed.
He naturally knew about the canal plan between the Volga and Don rivers mentioned by the Holy Emperor. In fact, this plan was proposed by the Army from the beginning.
But it is easy to enter the Volga River, but it is not so easy to completely occupy the entire Volga River and Don River Basin and ensure that the imperial warships can freely enter and exit the Black Sea.
After all, the Tatar cavalry are not vegetarians either.
They would definitely not be able to defeat the Imperial Army on the frontal battlefield, but after so many years, the Tatars have long since learned to be smart. They have not engaged in any frontal combat with the Tang Army in these years. They have always been engaged in cavalry harassment operations.
This was especially obvious when fighting in Central Asia before. The Tatar cavalry did not engage in any formal combat and only attacked the Tang Dynasty's transportation troops. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty's Western Expedition troops could only use the old method and fight all the way.
Build the railway and build it.
Of course, even if the Tatars were like this, they were still being beaten by the Tang Army. Even though the fighting was more complicated, it was just a little more troublesome.
So militarily, there is no problem!
The problem is, this war costs money!
And this 50 million is obviously not enough for the army to launch the third Western Expedition.
When it was fighting in Central Asia, the Army spent hundreds of millions of dollars on war!
From the current Ural River to the Volga River, it seems to be only a few hundred kilometers, but if you want to ensure that you seize the estuary of the Don River, you have to fight all the way into Ukraine. It is best to seize the land on both sides of the Kerch Strait, otherwise
It is still impossible to guarantee the free entry and exit of warships into the Black Sea.
The current Ukrainian region is already the main area controlled by the Tatars.
In the early years, the capital of the Tatars was Kiev. However, as they retreated steadily on the Eastern Front and occupied the German region on the Western Front, the front line has advanced to Paris, France.
Therefore, the Golden Kingdom of Tatar already moved its capital to Berlin in the German region two years ago.
The Tatars are also aware of the crisis on the Eastern Front. In the past two years, in addition to desperately building the Volga River direction, they have actually begun to build various fortresses on the west bank of the Dnieper River. Kiev has turned into a large military camp and fortress.
This means that the Tatars are no longer prepared to retreat on the Ukrainian plains. They plan to use their geographical and distance advantages to block the Tang Army here.
In the early years in the Western Regions, the Tatars were beyond their reach.
When they arrived in Central Asia, the two sides were evenly matched in terms of supplies, troop mobilization, etc. In the end, Datang relied on railway transportation to fight all the way.
But when they arrived in Ukraine, the Tatars could be said to be fighting on their doorstep. Distance was no longer a problem for them, and it even became an advantage.
For the Tang Army, even with railway transportation, it is still very difficult to go to Ukraine to fight!
In particular, the Tang Dynasty's ordnance and weapons became more and more advanced, and its reliance on supplies became older and heavier.
In the past, when flintlock smoothbore cannons were used, lead bullets and other items could be used in self-service operations. Even solid ball shells could be disposed of on the spot, as long as the gunpowder was transported from behind.
But now, the Tang Army has been equipped with combined rifles and breech-mounted rifled artillery. Every bullet and shell consumed can only be produced in those large arsenals and then transported through long railway lines.
.
The current east-west railway actually has a very small carrying capacity. The Western Region and Central Asian sections are all military railway standards. They were built in blocks when they were repaired, but the transport capacity is also small and they are easily damaged and require maintenance.
It's also very troublesome to get up.
In order to solve the transportation problem on the western front, the Army itself proposed a sea transportation plan and dug a canal between the Volga River and the Don River. Its direct purpose was also to solve the supply transportation problem.
Allow river vessels to enter the Don River from the Black Sea and then enter the Volga River Basin through the canal.
The Army wants to supply supplies more smoothly, and the Navy also hopes to connect the Black Sea and the East China Sea so that Navy warships can enter and exit freely, so it also supports the Army's plan.
Then the army and navy sat together and discussed digging the Suez Canal.
It's just that Egypt is still controlled by the Ottomans. If you want to dig the Suez Canal, you must first occupy Egypt.