Chapter 0900 It's easy to fight the country and it's difficult to rule the country
Entered Liaoyang Mansion.
Zhong Shiheng and others were driven down by Wang Zeng to pack up their honor guards. Kou Ji took Wang Zeng into the Liaoyang City Lord's Palace alone.
After sitting down, refreshments were served.
Wang Zeng suddenly said, "Kou Xiaozi, have you discussed it with the officials in advance? Is it your idea for the officials to enfeoff the kings?"
Kou Ji laughed and said: "Prince, you think too highly of me. The matter of enfeoffing kings is the exclusive power of the official family. I can't get involved, let alone discuss it with the official family, and the official family won't do it."
Discuss with me.
Besides, I've been on an expedition for a year and a half, and I haven't seen as many officials as you have.
There is no time to discuss with the officials."
Wang Zeng said disdainfully: "You think I am a three-year-old child? If you didn't discuss it with the officials, why did you let me thank you for the boy who was given by God just now?"
Kou Ji said frankly: "Others may not know, but you should know. The Guan family and I still have big things to do, and it is impossible for the Guan family to let me leave before the big things are done.
Therefore, as a prince, I am afraid that my son will fall upon me when I turn around."
When Wang Zeng heard this, he fell into silence. After a long time, he stared at Kou Ji and said, "You really have won the trust of the officials. Now, you and the officials can guess what the other person is thinking without having to talk to each other.
I admire you very much."
Kou Ji curled his lips and said helplessly: "What's there to admire? I worked hard for more than ten years and got a prince, but in the end I couldn't sit still for a day, so I had to pass it on to that kid Kou Tianci.
I won't even be able to snatch it back from that kid in the future.
I felt like I was the long-term employee hired by that guy.
Help him make money, help him accumulate family property, and help him build a successful career.
In the end, he didn't have to do anything to enjoy his wealth and the feeling of being a prince.
Do you think I am at a loss?"
Wang Zeng was stunned and laughed out loud, "What you said is true. You are really a long-term employee hired by that boy Kou Tianci."
At this point, Wang Zeng seemed to realize something, and the smile on his face disappeared.
"Are you kidding me?"
Wang Zeng asked with eyes wide open.
Kou Ji said in astonishment: "Why did the prince say this?"
Wang Zeng snorted coldly and said: "Your ten years of hard work is called hard work. Is my decades of hard work a waste of effort?!"
When Kou Ji heard this, he laughed and said, "My lord, you have misunderstood."
Wang Zeng snorted: "I didn't get it wrong. Your son has been in office for more than ten years and has already become a king. I have been in office for decades, and now my position as a political advisor is not secure.
By complaining and complaining in front of me, aren't you secretly accusing me of being a useless person who has done useless work for decades?"
Kou Ji sighed and said seriously: "I really didn't mean that."
Wang Zeng glared at Kou Ji and said, "That's what you mean!"
Seeing that he couldn't explain clearly, Kou Jixian could only shrug his shoulders and said: "Okay...that's what I mean..."
Wang Zeng stood up suddenly and shouted: "Seniors can be killed but not humiliated. Go, go out and make gestures."
Kou Ji rolled his eyes and said quietly: "Prince, can we talk about business?"
Wang Zeng glared at Kou Ji and sat down again.
Kou Ji sighed and said, "I know you are unbalanced, but our prince is obtained in exchange for merit, not for nothing.
So it’s useless no matter how unbalanced you are.
If you can use your life to help the Song Dynasty build a territory of thousands of miles, I believe the officials can also grant you a king.
Furthermore, when the officials give us the title of king, it is not just a reward for us, it also has some other meanings.
You should know it very well.
It is far more beneficial to the court to leave a group of highly accomplished generals in the wild and let them fend for themselves than to stay in Bianjing and interfere with the government's affairs."
When Wang Zeng heard what Kou Ji said, he sighed and said, "I don't feel that my heart is unbalanced. I just feel that after serving as an official for decades, I feel like I have worked in vain for decades, and I just feel uncomfortable."
Kou Ji raised his eyebrows and looked at Wang Zengjing waiting for the next step.
Wang Zeng did not sell out, and said frankly: "When I became an official, my long-cherished wish was to take back the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun and make the Song Dynasty rich and powerful.
After I became an official, I have been working hard on this for decades.
But as the country gets richer, there is no money left in the treasury, and there are even debts in arrears.
The people are indeed strong, but there is only my hometown and Bianjing City.
Not only did the Sixteenth Prefecture of Yanyun fail to be recaptured, they also almost lost Hejian Prefecture and Daming Prefecture.
If it hadn’t been for your appearance, I might not have been able to fulfill my lifelong wish in this life.”
Speaking of this, Wang Zeng stared at Kou Ji and said: "You are still very good. After becoming an official, you have gone through countless things, big and small. Not only has the country become rich, but the money in the treasury has piled up. The people have also become rich, not only my hometown and Bian
Every city in the capital, and many cities and villages in the Song Dynasty, have become rich because of your boy.
Even Hexi, which used to be filled with killings, has now become a huge granary of our Song Dynasty.
As for regaining lost territory, your boy can do better.
Your boy not only took back Yanyun, but also Dali, Xingqing Mansion, and even the entire Liao Kingdom and Korea.
This increased the territory of our Song Dynasty by 160%.
You, my boy, have been my number one hero since the founding of the Song Dynasty."
When Kou Ji heard that Wang Zeng praised him so highly, he felt alarmed. He stared at Wang Zeng suspiciously and said: "My lord, what you said is wrong. The success of the Song Dynasty is due to everyone's credit.
It’s my own contribution.
If it was my fault alone, it would be enough for the officials to make me the king. Why would they make others?
The fact that the officials are preparing to confer so many royal titles shows that the Song Dynasty is what it is today, which is the credit of all of us."
Wang Zeng stared at Kou Ji and said: "But these people who are crowned kings are either promoted by your boy, or they follow your boy to get the credit."
Kou Ji said decisively: "Mr. Cao relies on his own strength..."
Before Kou Ji finished speaking, Wang Zeng interrupted him, "If it weren't for you to innovate the military system and create muskets and artillery, even if Cao Wei lived another twenty years, Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures would only be able to watch.
look."
Kou Ji slowly shook his head, "Muskets and artillery just happened to meet. This thing has already taken shape. Even without me, it will be built sooner or later.
As for the reform of the military system, it is also the result of the hard work of the officials.
I'm just helping."
Wang Zeng glanced at Kou Ji and said, "If you say you have merit, you will have merit. Why are you so humble? Do you think that if you push out all the credit, no one will know what you have done and what merit you have accomplished?"
?”
Kou Ji curled his lips and said nothing.
Wang Zeng said bluntly: "If you have done meritorious service, you have done meritorious service. There is nothing to shirk."
Kou Ji stared at Wang Zeng and said: "My lord, from what I know about you, you are not the kind of person who likes flattery. Now that you are saying such flattery, do you have something to ask me for?"
"cough!"
Wang Zeng coughed dryly and said calmly: "I'm just telling the truth."
Kou Ji stared at Wang Zeng suspiciously.
Wang Zeng coughed again and changed the subject: "By the way, the officials are recruiting troops aggressively, do you know?"
Kou Ji thought for a moment and confessed: "I reported this matter to the officials. Now I, the Song Dynasty, have taken over Liao and Goryeo. All of a sudden, we have nearly doubled our territory.
Now that we have captured these territories, we cannot let them go to waste.
Someone must be sent to govern.
It's just that there are many prisoners here. If you want to govern this place, you must have heavy troops.
The imperial army is an important weapon of the country and cannot be stored here.
So we need to recruit some local soldiers to stay here."
Wang Zeng stared at Kou Ji closely and said in a deep voice: "It is indeed you who reported this matter to the officials."
Kou Ji asked: "Is there something wrong?"
Wang Zeng gritted his teeth and said, "Then do you know that the government will recruit two million local soldiers at one go?"
Kou Ji stared in astonishment.
"Two million?! Can the imperial court afford it?"
You must know that the soldiers of the Song Dynasty were all professional soldiers. They had to be paid when they entered the military camp. Without pay, they would not be able to contribute to the court.
It is precisely because of this that before the reform of the military system, there were often incidents where the army was not receiving pay, or the superiors had embezzled military pay, causing the army to become lieutenants, generals and soldiers.
Two million soldiers and horses, just to equip them with ordnance would require a large amount of money.
If you include food and salary, the expenses will be even greater.
The imperial court's current imperial army and local soldiers have exceeded one million.
If we add another two million soldiers and horses, it will be three million soldiers and horses.
With three million soldiers and horses, the annual food and salary expenditures will be more than twice as high as before.
More than twice the military salary, plus the expenses for elementary schools in various places, as well as the expenses for county schools and government schools to be established later.
The imperial court's annual income was simply not enough.
In other words, once two million soldiers and horses enter the camp, the county school and the government school will be opened at the same time.
The imperial court will immediately fall into a situation where it cannot make ends meet.
Officials' salaries do not necessarily mean they have enough money to pay.
So it was a bit crazy for Zhao Zhen to recruit two million soldiers and horses at once.
But Kou Ji was only briefly stunned before he understood what Zhao Zhen was thinking.
Recruiting soldiers is fake, but relocating people in disguise is real.
As long as the court survives the first year, money will flow into the court in the future.
Kou Ji's previous suggestion to Zhao Zhen was one million, but he didn't expect that Zhao Zhen would double it.
Kou Ji even admired Zhao Zhen's courage.
Wang Zeng watched Kou Ji's expression change from shock to calmness, and then said: "It seems that you don't know the true number of soldiers recruited by the officials, but you know the purpose of recruiting so many soldiers."
Kou Ji smiled and said nothing.
Wang Zeng narrowed his eyes slightly and asked in a deep voice: "Are you and the officials going to take action against the wealthy families, or are you going to solve the problem of land annexation?"
Kou Ji smiled calmly and said: "Prince, you have been an official for decades, so you don't know how many people's interests are involved in land annexation. It includes almost 99% of the powerful and powerful people in the Song Dynasty. Who dares to touch it?"
Wang Zeng said unceremoniously: "How dare you and the officials make a move!"
Kou Jiqian smiled and said: "My lord, please be careful. If you say this, it will kill people."
Wang Zeng narrowed his eyes and said: "Now, ninety-nine percent of the soldiers and horses in the world are from you and the officials, and ninety-nine percent have received favors from the imperial court. During the reform of the military system, you and the officials increased the local military strength.
With them keeping an eye on you, who would dare to disobey?"
"hehe……"
Kou Ji laughed twice.
Wang Zeng continued: "You asked the officials to recruit soldiers, and the number is probably not small. The officials wanted to recruit two million soldiers and horses at one go. Although it exceeded your expectations, you did not feel that this was wrong.
This means that the soldiers and horses recruited are not here to guard this place at all.
After a large number of them arrive here, they will inevitably turn into soldiers and civilians.
You and the officials are recruiting soldiers openly, but secretly they are relocating the people."
Hearing this, Kou Ji pondered for a moment and said, "So what if it is, so what if it's not?"
Wang Zeng said bluntly: "Once the people take root here, they will definitely take over the elders at home, and then the purpose of you and the officials will be exposed.
Guess what those powerful people and wealthy people will do?"
Kou Ji smiled calmly and said: "What can they do? Make trouble or spread rumors? How about a rebellion if they can't afford it? If they raise an army to rebel, it will make people more worry-free."
Wang Zeng said in a deep voice: "What if they go on strike and refuse to pay taxes?"
Kou Ji stared at Wang Zeng with a smile and asked calmly: "Is the prince negotiating on behalf of those powerful people and big families?"
Wang Zeng's face straightened and he said disdainfully: "Are they worthy of driving me around? Who are they?"
Kou Ji asked: "Then what do you mean by these words?"
Wang Zeng said bluntly: "I am just telling you what may happen next."
Kou Ji smiled and said: "Then the prince doesn't need to worry. If they really go on strike, the court can take some business back to the official camp.
If they don't want to make money, then let the court make money.
By the time the Cao family had left the hinterland of the Song Dynasty, they should have left behind a large number of businesses and people who were proficient in doing business.
Later, our Kou family, as well as the Zhu family, Zhong family, Liu family, Gao family, etc., will all leave the hinterland of the Song Dynasty one after another.
At that time, there will be more businesses left and more people who are proficient in doing business.
Businesses from all walks of life will definitely be involved.
If the imperial court uses these people to run various businesses, it should be barely able to operate.
You also know that in the Song Dynasty, those who sold cloth must have mulberry fields, and those who sold wine must have workshops for making wine.
The business we left behind must be sound. It is difficult to control the imperial court from the source of the business.
As for some people who want to embarrass the court officially.
I believe the officials don't mind sending them here.
Anyway, there are a lot of officials needed here.
Unless they can form a group, but based on my understanding of the powerful, they rarely form a group.
Even if they are temporarily united, if the officials kill them in one go, they will fall apart in an instant."
Having said this, the Kou family paused for a moment and continued: "As for tax resistance? We welcome it. Since the reform of the military system, the imperial court has not recruited people to serve on a large scale for several years.
The officials were considerate of the people, so they let local soldiers act as husbandmen and prisoners as coolies.
But the officials never said that they would no longer call for hard labor.
Nowadays, officials have migrated millions of extremely poor and impoverished people from the Song Dynasty.
More when they find out.
At that time, there would not be many poor people doing hard labor for them.
When the time comes, the officials will recruit hard labor again and evacuate all the poor people in the hinterland of the Song Dynasty.
Do you think those powerful people and big families have the courage to resist taxes by staring at the sword of the imperial court?
Do you have the guts to refuse to let your heirs do hard labor?"
Wang Zeng's face changed drastically and he stared at Kou Ji in shock.
Kou Ji continued: "The imperial court also has a Yizijiaozipu, a large granary in Hexi, and places such as Xingqing Mansion that will soon become a large granary, as well as Liaoyang Mansion, Bohai Mansion and other places.
By that time, the people will be doing hard labor, have food to eat, and have money to earn.
How many people will cause trouble while doing hard labor?"
Wang Zeng said word for word: "No one..."
Kou Ji nodded and said: "That's right, no one. Since the common people who are doing hard labor will not make trouble, and the knife is placed on the necks of the powerful, wealthy and wealthy, do you think they dare to go against the court again?"
Wang Zeng took a deep breath and said: "There are 35 million people in my court, 70% of whom are poor. Have you finished collecting them?"
The Ding in Wang Zeng's mouth refers to an adult man between the ages of twenty and sixty.
The actual population of the Song Dynasty was around 80 million.
Kou Ji and Zhao Zhen will definitely not be able to finish the campaign.
Kou Ji said frankly: "The conquest will definitely not be complete. But we don't need to conscript some places. For example, the Zhending Mansion. The largest wealthy family in the Zhending Mansion is the Cao family. Now that the Cao family has moved away, the rest in the Zhending Mansion are just some calculations.
Just a big landowner from a wealthy family.
They don't have the guts to go against the imperial court.
The imperial court is now the largest landowner in Zhending Mansion, and the court has some methods to make the big landowners in Zhending Mansion stay obedient.
Kaifeng, Datong, Shuntian, Hexi, Xingqing, Shaanxi, Sichuan and other places do not need to be recruited.
Because they are either under the eyes of the imperial court and being watched by the imperial court, or they have been sorted out long ago and there are no wealthy families there.
Leizhou and Southwest Prefecture, where Yongzhou is located, do not need regular meetings at all.
Most of the people in Taiyuan Prefecture are military strategists. If the Zhe family doesn't make a sound, the Yang family doesn't make a sound, and the Di Qing doesn't make a sound, they can't cause trouble.
There is no need to pay attention to the place where the Imperial Guards are stationed.
If they dare to cause trouble under the eyes of the Imperial Guard, I will admire their courage.
Therefore, the imperial court had to deal with several prefectures south of the Yangtze River, north of the Yangtze River, east of the Yangtze River, and west of the Yangtze River.
Therefore, when the imperial court subsequently collects hard labor, it can be done directly from the south of the Yangtze River, the north of the Yangtze River, the east of the Yangtze River, and the west of the Yangtze River."
Wang Zeng solemnly said: "The prefectures south of the Yangtze River, north of the Yangtze River, east of the river and west of the river are the richest and most populous, and you still can't conquer them all.
When recruiting troops, recruit more.
After those soldiers settled down here, their families would inevitably move here.
Only after their families have moved away will the people in those places start to make trouble.
Then there will be some hard labor.
Then dispatch two navy armies, Zhendong and Zhennan, to patrol the river and the river, focusing on the prefectures south of the Yangtze River, north of the Yangtze River, Hexi and Hedong.
What are they making trouble about?"
When Wang Zeng heard this, he was speechless.
Kou Ji took a long breath and said: "Those wealthy families are all afraid of death, so if something harms their interests, they like to use rumors to incite the poor people, or secretly force the poor people to make trouble.
Most of the livelihoods of those poor people are in their hands.
So I had to make trouble under their pressure.
But if I divert some of them and intimidate others, what can they do to make trouble with me?"
Wang Zeng hesitated for a moment and said in a deep voice: "The wealth of the wealthy families cannot be underestimated. Even if you recruit some and others, it is impossible to empty out the poor people in those places.
They can still incite some poor people to cause trouble.
Once you send troops to suppress it, the poor people will still suffer."
The combat effectiveness of the Custodes armed with firearms is unquestionable.
The entire Liao Kingdom was suppressed, and some people's rebellion was put down easily.
But once the imperial army is dispatched, it means that countless people will lose their lives.
Those are all common people of the Song Dynasty.
When Kou Ji heard this, he sighed and said: "The people are good people, they should not be harmed and cannot be harmed without permission. So do you think they are afraid of the rebels?"
Are they afraid of large-scale rebellion or rebellion?
Or maybe a bandit army suddenly appears who wants to do justice for heaven and kills wealthy families, are they afraid?"
"bass!"
Wang Zeng stood up suddenly, as if he had received a shot in the butt, and stared at Kou Ji with a horrified look on his face.
"Are you crazy?"
Kou Ji spread his hands and said calmly: "I'm not crazy, it's them who are crazy. They are against the imperial court, so the imperial court can't let them go, right?
If the court is afraid that they will make trouble, let them go and follow them.
So what kind of court is the imperial court?
What use does the imperial court have for us?
Just leave the court to them."
Wang Zeng glared at Kou Ji, gritted his teeth and said, "Of course the court can't let evil people go. But I can't implicate innocent people just to punish evil people."
Kou Ji said calmly: "I will not implicate the common people. I will only let those people kill the rich and powerful, and divide their money, grain and land."
Speaking of this, Kou Ji said with a bright smile: "There are forbidden troops blocking the waterway, and local soldiers are stationed in other places. They have no place to escape."
Wang Zeng shouted angrily: "You are such a lunatic! There are many good people among wealthy families!"
Kou Ji smiled and said: "Don't worry. They won't make a fuss. What they will be most concerned about then will definitely be their business.
After all, if the imperial court took care of their business, they would have no way to do business.
When it comes to bullying and dominating the market, can they compare to the imperial court?"
Wang Zeng glared at Kou Ji and shouted: "Even so, you shouldn't have crazy ideas. We have plenty of time and can slowly carve flesh from them."
Kou Ji put away the smile on his face and said in a deep voice: "We don't have that much time. We not only need to rescue the poor people from the hands of the rich and powerful, but also completely solve the problem of land annexation.
More importantly, after we solve the problem, we must perfect the law and let the people keep it firmly in mind.
In this way, land annexation will not occur as usual.
In this way, there is no way for latecomers to take away the land from the common people and hand it over to a few people.
It’s often easy to solve a problem, but it’s often harder to stop it from happening than to solve the problem.”
Wang Zeng glared at Kou Ji, "You can solve the problem however you want, but you can't send troops to commit murder? When soldiers and horses attack, they will kill not only evil people, but also countless innocent people.
We cannot commit evil in order to eliminate evil.
Otherwise, once the old evil is eliminated, we will become the new evil."