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Chapter 526 Special Gift
As expected, bad news travels faster than good news, and even the dark of night cannot slow it down. Early the next morning, the civil and military officials waiting in front of the Meridian Gate to enter the palace to celebrate the Queen's birthday were already talking in small groups in low voices.

Some people say that Liaodong should not have been abandoned in the first place. If such a big country squeezes a little, it will not be able to collect one million taels of silver. It's okay now, let's just let the Jurchens develop and breed tigers. Sending troops to exterminate them would probably cost several times the amount of military expenditure. Even if it takes several years and tens of thousands of people were killed or injured, it may not be possible to completely clean up.

Some people say that the Ming Dynasty had a vast territory and many soldiers and generals. Now with the benefits of the New Deal, Taicang is gradually filling up. As long as we strictly defend ourselves and prevent the Jurchens from advancing even half a step westward, what can I do? When the emperor's army is trained and the navy advances along the waterways, it will be easy to defeat Liaodong.

Some people say that Liaodong has been within the territory of the Ming Dynasty since ancient times. It is disrespectful for someone to proclaim the emperor and establish a country now. Regardless of whether they have enough money or insufficient soldiers, they should send troops to destroy it. Otherwise, others will follow suit and no longer respect the Ming Dynasty. .

Some people even say that Liaodong Jurchen is caused by scabies, and the real threat lies in the north. Compared with the Jurchens, the Mongolian tribe has a large number of people. If the handling is not good this time, the northern defense line, which is thousands of miles away from Shanhaiguan to Suzhou Guard, may be in continuous war again.

Finally, some people meant something more than what they said, saying that the border was in a critical situation, but the emperor celebrated the queen's birthday with great fanfare. They did not dare to say that he was a king who had subjugated his country, and he was infinitely close to mediocrity.

It is difficult to draw a conclusion at this moment as to who is right, but we can get some idea of ​​who is thinking. Some are gloating about misfortune, some are worried, and some are happy to see the change.

However, before this discussion had time to ferment and sublimate, it was interrupted by a burst of bells and drums. The auspicious day has arrived, the doors on the left and right are wide open, and a group of officials, Wen Dong and Wu Xi, file in according to their titles and positions.

The venue for the Queen's birthday banquet was also chosen at Fengtian Gate, just like the court meeting. At this time, tables and chairs were already placed under His Majesty Dan, and a long table was placed in front of the throne. The queen in her crown sat behind her.

Under the leadership of the master of ceremonies of the Ministry of Etiquette, the officials lined up in several columns and boarded the Danbi one after another to salute and congratulate the queen in person. Next to them, there were the officials in the ceremonial room singing the ceremony with a list of names, giving gifts to so and so, and shouting in a shouting tone to make everyone aware.

However, the content is not exciting. The emperor has already issued an edict that the value of gifts cannot exceed 100 taels of silver, so there is nothing surprising. Apart from handicrafts, they are specialties from various places.

"Li Qiyuan, you are too stingy to use the paraffin from my factory as a gift." When it was the governor of Shaanxi's turn, the gift he sent was large and heavy. It was a wooden barrel and required two eunuchs to carry it on wooden poles.

The moment Wang Chengen opened the lid, Hong Tao guessed what it was. He stood up, walked over and touched it, then immediately curled his lips in a gesture of disgust. Light yellow, smooth to the touch, also like paraffin wax. Oh, right, it's not paraffin wax, it's crude paraffin wax, and there's still some oil in it that hasn't been refined.

"Shaanxi's specialty products are constantly paid tribute, and His Majesty is not allowed to offer anything valuable. I really can't think of anything else that would catch Your Majesty's eyes. Only this paraffin is quite novel, so I came here to show my shame."

Li Qiyuan, the governor of Shaanxi, is from Nanzhili. He is fair and fat. It has been more than four years since he took office in Shaanxi, and he still looks like he is full of moisture. His ability to govern was average, but his vision was very accurate. Ever since he went to Shaanxi, he had a special liking for the oil refinery and took more care of it, and he really benefited from it.

Since the refinery was officially put into production, good news has come one after another. First there was mixed oil, then paraffin and asphalt, and then match factories, candle factories, and asphalt factories appeared. Relying on these factories, not only brought a large amount of investment and tax revenue to the relatively poor Yan'an Prefecture, but also provided more people with job opportunities. It's a pity that the output of oil wells in Yanchang County is not very high, and the output of matches, candles and asphalt is not very high either.

But it doesn’t matter. Once people taste the sweetness, they don’t need to bother with persuasion. They will actively look for ways to make money, such as looking for oil everywhere. Many Shaanxi businessmen hired local people to drill holes nearby with Luoyang shovels all day long whenever they heard about black grease seeping out of the ground.

Not to mention, some people have successfully drilled for oil. Nowadays, oil exploration has become an industry. The investment is not large. As long as you drill out black oil, you can get rich immediately. Even if you don’t have the money to build a factory for mining, you can still sell it to a bigger businessman.

"How is Bi Maokang doing these days?" These changes were really not what Hong Tao had expected. When Bi Maokang was asked to build oil production plants and refineries, he just wanted to occupy a pit and make some money with the nobles. Unexpectedly, not only the target was achieved, but also exceeded by a lot. It was really unintentional.

"Oil was discovered in Yanzhou at the beginning of the year. Yuan Wailang is building an oil refinery there. It will be completed roughly next year. By then, the output of paraffin and asphalt will more than double. His Majesty is still discerning and sent Yuan Wailang to help Shaanxi. If nothing happens, Yan'an Prefecture will become the top tax collector in Shaanxi next year."

There is no official who doesn't like the wealthy people under his control, even corrupt officials. As soon as Bi Maokang was mentioned, Li Qiyuan immediately praised him profusely. He seemed eager to offer him a favor. Of course, he also didn't forget to praise the emperor along the way.

He was originally not very interested in the New Deal. Regardless of whether the ideas were consistent or not, the content of the New Deal alone did not arouse his interest.

Shaanxi is not close to the sea, and there are Mongolian tribes in the north, so it is basically impossible to develop large-scale foreign trade. The natural environment has destined that large areas of mulberry, cotton and sugar cane cannot be planted here, and it is not feasible to engage in handicrafts and textile industries.

Moreover, the coal and iron minerals discovered were not abundant, and there was no hope of even mining coal for coking. At most, they can sow wheat and sweet potatoes on hillside land that is not too short of water. It is a bit far away from becoming rich through the New Deal.

But from the black water that was once despised, Bi Maokang managed to produce oil that can be burned, paraffin that can be used to make matches, and asphalt that is black and smelly but was rushed to buy by the navy. It seems that the New Deal is not only not far away, but also close at hand, and wealth is also right in front of us. How can it not be exciting?

"It's not your turn to say this. Don't steal the spotlight from local officials. Where is the chief envoy of Shaanxi?"

Hong Tao did not intend to accept this relatively optimistic estimate. The governor was not a local official, but more like a central commissioner. Issues regarding local economic development were best left to local officials to show their merit.

(End of this chapter)