"Let the soldiers of the Forbidden Army go to open up wasteland?!"
Li Zhaoliang felt that Kou Ji was joking with him.
What is the Custodes?
Professional soldier.
The elite soldiers and horses of the Song Dynasty.
Killing weapon.
How can they go to farm?
They are not the soldiers of the former Tang Dynasty.
Kou Ji turned to look at Li Zhaoliang and asked, "Is there something wrong?"
Li Zhaoliang shouted: "They are soldiers and horses of the imperial court! Soldiers and horses! They are not farmers or civilians! Neither the three yamen nor the Privy Council will agree to this move."
Kou Ji said calmly: "What's the point of asking the San Yamen and the Privy Council to agree? It's enough if they agree."
Seeing that Kou Ji insisted on going his own way, Li Zhaoliang could only say in frustration: "Then you go and tell them. I won't tell them anyway. If I use them as coolies and go to the battlefield in the future, they might be there."
I'm shooting a cold arrow from behind."
Kou Ji nodded and said: "I will naturally tell them about this matter. I just informed you and asked you to cooperate."
When Li Zhaoliang heard this, he immediately asked: "If you ask them to open up wasteland, how can they have time to accompany our teacher back to the court? Without them to accompany us, how can we show the bravery of the three of us?"
"Master returns to court?"
Kou Ji smiled calmly, "It's early..."
As long as Kou Ji is not in a hurry to return to the court, and as long as Kou Ji can afford to raise these troops, there is no problem in delaying it for more than half a year.
It took at least ten days and a half to deliver documents from Hexi to the imperial court. One month passed after one return.
After the official document of the imperial commander's return to the imperial court was delivered to Hexi, Kou Jidi pushed and delayed, and was able to fool around for another month.
Then he found an excuse and sent an official document to the court, claiming that there were remaining enemies in Hexi, or that there had been changes in the war between Huangtou and Huihe, and soldiers and horses were needed to guard it.
It can be delayed for a few more months.
In a blink of an eye, it can be postponed until autumn.
After the harvest in autumn, the warehouses are full of grain and grass, and the land in Hexi has the foundation for development.
It's not too late to lead the army back to the court.
Kou Ji had a plan in mind, but he had no intention of telling Zhu Neng and Li Zhaoliang.
The two of them were still imagining the scene of Zhao Zhen personally welcoming Shili Di outside Bianjing City.
I am also imagining the scene where Zhao Zhen became a hero three times.
The two of them just wanted to take advantage of their achievements in opening up new territories and gain fame in Bianjing City.
It would be even more beautiful if you could provide a bathing pool.
Almost all their lifelong pursuits can be satisfied.
If Kou Ji told them the truth, the two of them would probably explode on the spot.
Kou Ji, Zhu Neng, and Li Zhaoliang took a breath and went to the military camp in the city to gather the soldiers.
After Kou Ji gathered the soldiers, he didn't say too much nonsense in his first sentence.
"I have written a memorial for your achievements in Hexi and submitted it to the officials. I believe that the rewards from the imperial court will be delivered to you soon.
I am here to wish you all in advance a promotion and prosperity."
When the soldiers heard what Kou Ji said, they all responded with joy.
After the shouts of the soldiers became quieter, Kou Ji spoke again, "It is a great joy to be promoted and make a fortune. Do you want to add to the joy?"
When the soldiers heard this, they were slightly stunned.
When Kou Ji saw no one responded, he sighed, "What a pity... I have gone through so much trouble and spent countless favors to obtain the benefits for you, but since you have no intention of wanting them at all."
The soldiers were stunned again.
Immediately, someone asked: "Kou...Kou Qin Envoy, I wonder what the benefits you mentioned are?"
Kou Jicheng sighed, "I have been following you on the battlefield for several months, and I am well aware of your hard work. Although you are in the forbidden army, apart from armaments, you have poor food and poor housing. The little military salary you get every year will be given to you."
He returned home and raised his wife, children and mother.
I have heard that some of you who have heirs in your family cannot even support their children with the military pay they receive every year.
Children in other people's homes have new clothes to wear and meat to eat during festivals.
However, some of your descendants can only pass on patched clothes and eat some cold rice and porridge during the holidays.
After I learned about this, I was heartbroken."
Kou Ji said with a heartbroken look: "For my great Song Dynasty, you all sacrificed your lives and blood, even if you shed all the blood in your body. Even so, my wife and children at home still don't have enough to eat.
Why?
Why?
Why should we risk our lives while our wives, children, and mothers at home are still living in misery?"
When the soldiers heard this, some of them lowered their heads sadly, while others did not take it seriously.
Seeing this, Kou Ji continued: "I know that some of you have made a lot of contributions in this Hexi War. Based on your contributions, the money rewarded by the imperial court is enough for your wives, children, and mothers.
, live a moist life for a while.
However, if you nourish it for a while, will you be satisfied?
After your wives, children, and mothers spend all the money that the imperial court has given you, what will you use to live on?
If there is no war in the imperial court in the future, you will not even have the chance to receive rewards again.
I can only rely on my meager salary and once again live a life of lack of food and clothing."
As soon as these words came out.
Almost all the soldiers lowered their heads.
Only some generals remained unmoved.
Because they are officials themselves and have established many meritorious deeds in Hexi, it is inevitable that they will be promoted and make a fortune.
The higher your official status, the more your salary will increase, and you no longer need to rely on rewards from the court to live.
But they were a minority after all, and Kou Ji didn't bother to pay attention to them.
When Kou Ji saw the soldiers hanging their heads, he said in a deep voice: "I know how difficult it is for you, so I wrote to the court and the officials. I risked being impeached by the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, and I fought to be dismissed from office.
The danger has given you an opportunity to make a fortune."
The soldiers raised their heads and looked at Kou Ji respectfully.
Someone asked in a deep voice: "What opportunity?"
Kou Ji clenched his fist and said in a deep voice: "I have won the opportunity for you to open up wasteland and farm for one year."
When the soldiers heard this, they frowned.
To be a coolie?
Kou Ji continued: "It's up to you to open up as much wasteland as you want. It's up to you to plant as much or as much grain as you want. What I need you to remember is that the food you grow belongs to you personally.
No tax!
If you are unwilling to bring food back to the court when you return to the court in one year, I can send someone to buy the food in your hands based on the price of food in Bianjing City.
Grain seeds, agricultural tools.
I will give it to you free of charge.
While you are clearing wasteland and farming, your military pay will not be short of a penny.
The imperial court distributes them as usual."
The soldiers' eyes widened for a moment.
No tax?
Plant as many as you like?
Purchase at Bianjing City’s grain prices?
Paid farming?
Good guy.
Wouldn’t it be great to plant a few hundred acres of land?
A thoughtful soldier immediately spoke up, "If Envoy Kou, Bingzhi and others are too busy, can you please ask your family members who are hundreds of miles away to come and help?"
Kou Ji raised his brows and sighed, "That's all... I am a good person and will do my best to the end. It's up to you. I just hope that after the imperial court dismisses me because of this matter, you won't add insult to injury...
…”
"Boom..."
Immediately, a soldier knelt heavily on one knee on the ground and said in a deep voice: "Kou Gong is a great kindness, I will keep it in my heart. If someone suffers from this in the future, I am willing to support Kou Gong for a hundred years."
"The same is true for villains..."
"The same goes for villains..."
"..."
One by one, the soldiers knelt down on one knee and solemnly promised Kou Ji.
They call themselves villains, not humble people.
In other words, they made a promise to Kou Ji in their personal capacity.
Kou Ji clasped his hands behind his back, sighed and said: "Hurry and go to the military clerk's office to register your name, and then the clerk will allocate your whereabouts. After you get the place names, rush there as soon as possible to occupy more good land."
The soldiers all clasped their fists, saluted Kou Ji, stood up, and quickly rushed to the military clerk's office.
Zhu Neng and Li Zhaoliang stood in a corner of the military camp and were dumbfounded.
Zhu Neng looked at Li Zhaoliang blankly and murmured: "What did you see..."
Li Zhaoliang opened his mouth and said in shock: "I saw countless amounts of money pouring into the Kou Mansion."
Zhu Neng swallowed and said, "Are we fools?"
"Um……"
Li Zhaoliang nodded without hesitation.
In the eyes of the soldiers, Kou Ji was a good man comparable to a saint. He helped them win the opportunity to make a fortune, and was willing to spend countless money to buy the food they grew.
It can be said that there is no better person in the world than Kou Ji.
But in the eyes of Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng, it was a different story.
Soldiers can indeed get many benefits by clearing wasteland and farming, but Kou Ji gets even more.
Kou Ji exempted the soldiers from paying taxes on farming, and provided grain seeds and farm tools to the soldiers free of charge. It seemed that he had paid a huge amount of money.
But he obtained millions of acres, tens of millions of acres, or even more fertile land.
The soldiers finished clearing the wasteland and left.
The land was left to Koji.
Compared with the huge amount of land, what are the insignificant grains and agricultural tools?
So what’s the difference in the price of the food?
As for the military salary of the soldiers, Kou Ji does not need to pay at all.
As long as the soldiers belong to the Forbidden Army, the court will not lack a penny of their military pay even if they sit around to gain weight.
"Li Zhaoliang, compared with Kou Ji, the methods you use to make money are really unsightly. You have worked hard and spent countless manpower. The money you have made for generations is not as good as others' words."
After Zhu Neng slowly came to his senses, he sighed sincerely.
Li Zhaoliang did not pay attention to Zhu Neng's sarcastic words, but said solemnly: "I have to talk to Kou Caishen."
"I'll go too..."
"..."
Kou Jigang just walked out of the military camp gate.
Zhu Neng and Li Zhaoliang gave chase.
"God of Wealth, wait..."
Kou Ji seemed to have expected that the two of them would catch up, so he stopped after hearing their calls.
Kou Ji turned around, stared at Zhu Neng and Li Zhaoliang, and said with a half-smile, "When did I become the God of Wealth?"
"just……"
Li Zhaoliang said without blushing and without a beating heart.
Kou Ji rolled his eyes, curled his lips and said, "Are you jealous?"
Zhu Neng looked hesitant and said nothing.
Li Zhaoliang nodded decisively and said: "I'm jealous..."
Kou Ji picked up the shelf and said, "You two were not jealous at all in the City Lord's Mansion just now."
Zhu Neng smiled bitterly and said: "We didn't expect that you could really persuade those soldiers to help you open up wasteland. It was clearly meant to deceive them into working hard, but when it came out of your mouth, it turned into
It’s a blessing for them.”
Kou Ji grimaced and said, "Nonsense...the soldiers are clearing wasteland for themselves, not for me."
Zhu Neng and Li Zhaoliang looked at each other with wry smiles on their faces.
Kou Ji was obviously speaking in an official tone to the two of them.
Li Zhaoliang pondered for a moment and said decisively: "One hundred thousand acres, you can make the conditions..."
Zhu Neng quickly followed: "Same..."
Opening up wasteland west of Hexi is one of the dividends of the war.
The people employed were still Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng.
But Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng did not ask Kou Ji for the land in vain.
The reason is simple.
When Kou Ji asked the two of them to come forward in the city lord's mansion, they did not agree.
Now that Kou Ji has convinced those soldiers, Kou Ji can enjoy the benefits alone.
Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng had to pay a certain price if they wanted to take advantage.
It's like paying an IQ tax.
If you don’t have wisdom yourself and take advantage of other people’s wisdom, you have to pay the price.
Some behind-the-scenes transactions in the court basically follow this rule.
"One hundred thousand acres?"
Kou Ji looked at Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng in astonishment.
Li Zhaoliang's heart skipped a beat and he asked tentatively: "Too much?"
The corner of Kou Ji's mouth twitched.
Li Zhaoliang muttered: "Ninety thousand acres will do..."
Kou Ji glanced at Li Zhaoliang and walked out without looking back.
Li Zhaoliang followed Kou Ji's footsteps and shouted: "Eighty thousand acres will do..."
Seeing that Kou Ji still didn't stop.
Li Zhaoliang gritted his teeth and said: "The minimum is 70,000 acres, it can't be lower..."
Kou Ji paused, turned around, and looked at Li Zhaoliang with disdain, "Can't we have some potential?"
Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng stared at Kou Ji in astonishment, not understanding what Kou Ji meant.
Kou Ji glared at the two men and gritted his teeth and said: "The cultivated land in Hexi is measured in tens of millions of acres. How much can the people who stay in Hexi occupy? How much can the soldiers who stay in Hexi occupy?
The captives of the Huangtou Uighurs, the Uighur tribesmen in Ganzhou, the land reclaimed by the civilians and soldiers who were unwilling to stay in Hexi were all decided by us.
Hundreds of thousands of people are working to open up wasteland, and the amount of land they can create is beyond your imagination.
Two hundred thousand acres of land, how dare you open your mouth?"
Li Zhaoliang and Zhu Neng's eyes widened in shock.
"You...you mean we want less?"
"You don't have half a million acres, how dare you open your mouth?"
Li Zhaoliang said in horror: "Are you crazy? We occupy 500,000 acres of land in Hexi. Can the imperial court agree to it? Can the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty agree to it?"
"Why doesn't the imperial court agree? Why don't the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty agree? As long as we can plant the land and pay the full amount of taxes to the court, the imperial court will definitely agree. As for the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, there is no need to worry.
If they want to seek benefits in Hexi, they will never dare to find fault with us on the issue in Hexi."
Kou Ji said calmly.
Li Zhaoliang pondered: "Are you going to let Man Chao's civil and military forces come in to reap the benefits?"
Kou Ji rolled his eyes, "Otherwise..."
Li Zhaoliang gritted his teeth and said, "The Hexi we conquered should naturally be distributed among us."
Kou Ji said angrily: "Do you think your surname is Zhao?"
Before Li Zhaoliang could speak, Kou Ji curled his lips and said, "You yourself came out of the profit field, and you should understand that those who monopolize the benefits will not end well.
Therefore, some of Hexi's interests must eventually be given away.
While the distribution rights are still in our hands, we can eat the meat and leave the bones and soup to others."
Li Zhaoliang said with some reluctance: "There are many people in the court who dislike me, and I don't want them to take advantage of me."
Kou Ji glanced at Li Zhaoliang and said, "As long as we don't eat alone, we won't get into trouble. As for who will share the bones and soup, aren't we the ones who have the final say?
Although Hexi is big, it cannot satisfy everyone.
There will always be some people who will make a profit, and there will always be some people who will get nothing.
Now, we just need to eat the meat we should eat first.
Then just sit quietly in the west of Hexi and wait for those people to bring all kinds of rare treasures and offer all kinds of peerless beauties to curry favor with us.
When we are happy, we give them a few bones and a bowl of soup; when we are unhappy, we ignore them."