Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 490 The burden is hard to bear
"There are two warehouse officials in the household's warehouse. Counting you, there are three."

"Each of the three of you will be on duty in the warehouse every day, and the other two will be responsible for following each room where the money and food are withdrawn to check below to see if the money and food withdrawn have been implemented."

"If it is not implemented, reporting once will result in a grade-A merit, and three merits will result in a year of paid leave."

"This vacation is usually used by officials to take the imperial examination. Only those who pass the examination have the possibility of serving as chief officials."

"However, it is only possible to be a student. If you really want to be a 100% sure of being the chief officer, you have to pass the exam to be a candidate or a Jinshi."

"Do you understand all this?"

In the Nandian County Yamen, Gao Guan was walking around the Yamen with Zhu Zhanhe, who was about the same age as him.

After walking around, he finally arrived at the door of the warehouse managed by the household.

There are two teams of soldiers and horses with small flags stationed at the door of the warehouse of the household, and there are soldiers and horses patrolling the surrounding area.

"The household house is an important area of ​​the county government, so it is surrounded by a wall that is one foot high and three feet wide."

"This place is fifty steps from east to west and sixty steps from north to south. There are two warehouses for money and grain inside. The money warehouse occupies no more than two percent, the grain warehouse covers seven percent, and the remaining one is a patrol road."

"Not to mention you, even I need to check this place."

After he finished speaking, Gao Guan took Zhu Zhanhe to the warehouse door, raised his hands, accepted the inspection in full view of the public, and walked inside.

"The warehouse does not provide money or food at night, so you only need to unlock it at nine o'clock every day and lock it at four o'clock. You work seven hours a day, and your salary is paid on the last day of each month."

"Register your passbook number to me, and then bring your passbook to me for stamping at the end of each month. Just go to the bank to collect your salary the next day."

As Gao Guan spoke, Zhu Zhanhe also took out a small folding book. The outside of the book was made of thin leather and had hot-rolled numbers on it.

Gao Guan took the passbook and led Zhu Zhanhe to the door of the warehouse, where there was a table and two warehouse officials who were guarding the warehouse.

"High official!"

When the two of them saw Gao Guan coming with someone, they knew without much thought that this was their new colleague.

"This is Guo He, a native of Yingtian Mansion. In the future, he will be a Cangzhan official like you."

"Take him with you for the next few days. When you think he is ready, let him guard the warehouse alone and go to the construction site with the car."

"Yes!"

Gao Guan briefly communicated, and the two of them nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Gao Guan also turned back to look at Zhu Zhanhe: "I'll take this bankbook away first, and I'll bring it to you before class ends."

"Thank you, Mr. Gaodian." Zhu Zhanhe bowed and saluted, without any airs of a prince.

Of course, except for Jiang Huai, Zhang Bohai, Wang Xuan and Gao Guan, no one in this place knew that he was the prince.

In the previous issue of "Da Ming Bao", it was clearly published that the prince was guarding the border in Hailaer.

Unless they had first-hand information, no one would have thought he was here.

"Introduce yourselves, I'm leaving."

After leaving a few words, Gao Guan left with Zhu Zhanhe's bankbook.

As for Zhu Zhanhe, these two officials who serve as warehouse officials are not blind. Although Zhu Zhanhe's skin is dark and rough because of Hai Laer's guarding the border, his temperament makes him look like a member of the family.

The two Cangzhan officials would not easily offend Zhu Zhanhe before they understood his background.

Soon, they began to help Zhu Zhanhe adapt to the working environment of the warehouse, and Gao Guan also found Jianghuai with Zhu Zhanhe's bankbook.

He walked into the study, opened his bankbook and clicked his tongue a few times: "As expected of someone from that place, look at this deposit..."

He turned Zhu Zhanhe's bankbook over and handed it to Jiang Huai. Jiang Huai was dealing with official business, but he still glanced at it.

The passbook clearly recorded eight digits in capital letters. Although the unit was in Wen, it was converted to as much as 30,000 Guan.

Thirty thousand guan, which is almost the annual tax revenue of some large counties. Even Longchuan Prefecture, which has a population of more than 300,000 people, has an annual income of only 80,000 guan.

"Really amazing..."

Jiang Huai couldn't help but shake his head, and Gao Guan also said with surprise:
"After getting in close contact with him, his aura showed that he was in a superior position. After I left the warehouse, I took a peek. Liu Jin and Zhou Ji were very respectful to him. I'm afraid they wouldn't target him until they figured out his identity. he."

"Is that your identity?" Jiang Huai closed his bankbook with a smile on his lips:
"Keep it secret for the time being. When everyone in the yamen becomes familiar with him, we will reveal his false identity and let him experience the gap."

"You guy..." Gao Guan smiled bitterly, but Jiang Huai smiled and lowered his head to deal with government affairs.

Seeing this, Gao Guan didn't say much, and just registered Jianghuai's passbook in the county government and government government books.

These books will be sent to local banks on the 25th of every month, where they will be registered and sent to provincial and national banks for records.

The speed of doing this is not fast. For example, if someone opens a bankbook this month, it will take about a month to arrive at the head office. The head office will compile the booklet and distribute it to more than 2,400 banks across the country.

These banks vary widely. Some may take a few days to get the documents, while others may take a year.

Because of this, after opening a passbook and depositing money, it will take at least three months to be able to withdraw money normally from banks in other places in Beijing and sixteen provinces, and it will take at least half a year to be able to withdraw money normally from banks in other places in Nanyang. As for Manlajia To the west of the strait, it will take anywhere from half a year to a year.

But normally, businessmen also know these rules, but there is no need for ordinary people to know. After all, ordinary people's money is the most stable, because they rarely leave their place of residence.

After finishing what he had to do, Gao Guan went to return the passbook to Zhu Zhanhe, and then left the warehouse.

Zhu Zhanhe was studying quietly in the warehouse, while the city of Beijing thousands of miles away was filled with the smell of gunpowder smoke.

"Although the Changji Railway is only 200 miles long, railway construction in Northeast China is already far ahead of the country. In comparison, railways in other places have made no progress."

"Now the Central Plains Railway has begun to be built. Shaanxi, Henan, and Shandong are all connected by railways. Even Sichuan, Jiaozhi, and Yunnan have railways."

"In this case, we should first consider railways in provinces south of the Yangtze River, such as building a railway from Wuchang to Ningbo."

"I have calculated that this railway will start from Wuchang and connect with the future Huguang Railway, passing through Huangzhou, Jiujiang, Nanchang, Raozhou, Chizhou, Taiping, Yingtian, Zhenjiang, Changzhou, Suzhou, Songjiang, Jiaxing, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, arriving in Ningbo, etc., totaling one Beijing, three provinces and sixteen prefectures!”

"In terms of population alone, this railway has a wider impact than the Beijing-Beijing Railway. The population of the 16 prefectures it passes through alone is as high as 30 million. The economic benefits created are self-evident. ”

In the main hall of Wuying Hall, Yang Pu sat in his seat and argued with everyone about the railway issue.

In the past railway construction, Jiangnan hardly benefited at all. Instead, it kept spending money.

Whether it is the Northwest Railway, the Northeast Railway, the Beijing-Beijing Railway, or even the current Mobei, Central Plains, Sichuan, Yunnan-Vietnam, Kaihan and other railways, these are basically railways built north of the Yangtze River, but not in the extensive Jiangnan area. Get some benefit.

After so many years, it is inevitable that there will be some imbalance in the local area.

But when faced with Yang Pu's words, Wang Hui, who was sitting in his seat, retorted:
"These places mentioned by Academician Yang are basically connected to the Yangtze River water transportation. With the Yangtze River, commercial goods can be transported even without railways. Therefore, building railways is just the icing on the cake, not a timely help."

"In comparison, Jilin also has the Songhua River, but the Songhua River is frozen for up to four months every year. Four months is enough to delay a lot of things!"

Although Wang Hui was the last person to migrate to Bohai, with this status, he also received a lot of help that he had never had before.

The more he stands out for Bohai and the New Deal faction, the easier it is for him to gain support. This is why Xu Shuo has been working hard on the frontier for so many years, but he can finally compete with Xu Shuo on the same stage just by talking in Beijing.

Sitting on the chair, Xu Shuo also looked at his former friend with complicated eyes.

They used to catch fish and shrimps carefree on the beach of Micang Town, but now they are sitting in the center of the Ming Dynasty's power, arguing with each other.

Such changes made Xu Shuo feel sad.

"I didn't say that the railway between Changchun and Jilin cannot be built. The imperial court can build it at the same time."

Seeing Wang Hui's sharp tongue, Yang Pu didn't want to argue with him over the 200-mile railway. What he wanted was the 2,600-mile Jiangnan Railway.

"The imperial court's situation really makes it possible to start building these two railways again."

As the representative of He Xini selected by Zhu Gaoxu, Xue Xuan opened her mouth to appease the two of them, while the others looked at their noses and their hearts.

Xu Shuo did not take the initiative to fight for any resources, because he was chosen by Zhu Gaoxu, and the reason for choosing him was very simple, that is, there was no one available in the army, and he was from Bohai and had no connection with the New Deal faction. As the representative of the Sixth Army Governor's Office in the cabinet, he could not speak easily.

Yang Rong and Yang Pu's faction would naturally not refute what Yang Rong and Xue Xuan said.

Wang Hui frowned when he heard this. After all, the Jiangnan Railway would not be less than two thousand miles long. If this railway was to be built, it would cost at least tens of millions of dollars.

If these tens of millions of dollars are invested in Northeast China, Shanxi, Beizhili, and Shandong, it will undoubtedly bring the economy of the north to a higher level.

"The construction of the Jiangnan Railway is just the icing on the cake. What the court should do is to provide help in times of need. For example, although there is a railway in Shandong, it is only in western Shandong, but there is no railway passing through eastern Shandong."

As Wang Hui spoke, he suddenly stood up and bowed to the side hall: "Your Majesty, I think that a railway should be built from Dongchang Station of the Liangjing Railway to Jinan, Qingzhou and Dengzhou."

"In addition, a railway should also be built from Haizhou to Jinzhou Port Arthur, and from Jinzhou to Dingliao County."

"In this way, if we take the sea route in the future, Liaodong and Shandong will also trade more easily and frequently!"

"Strong words!" After hearing Wang Hui's words, Yang Rong couldn't sit still and stood up and bowed:

"Your Majesty, there are already railways between Liaodong and Shandong. Even if the railways mentioned by Wang Xueshei are built, they will only affect a few million people."

"In comparison, the Jiangnan Railway, which is ten times the number, can promote the circulation of goods and allow the people to live and work in peace and contentment." The two of them competed with each other, but Zhu Gaoxu in the side hall made no move.

After a while, both of their waists were slightly sore, and then Zhu Gaoxu's voice sounded in the side hall.

"What you said is reasonable, but I would like to hear the suggestions of the other three bachelors."

After Zhu Gaoxu finished speaking, Yang Pu expressed his stance: "Your Majesty, I support Bachelor Yang Rong."

"Your Majesty, I support Bachelor Wang Hui..." Xue Xuan is from Henan and did not want to offend Wang Hui, so she chose Wang Hui.

As a result, Xu Shuo was the only one who remained silent.

"It's really difficult..."

Feeling the gazes from all around, Xu Shuo sighed secretly, and then stood up slowly.

He didn't pay attention to the glances from his beloved brother, or he deliberately ignored them.

"Your Majesty, I feel that enough money and food have been allocated for the construction of railways at present. Whether it is the Jiangnan Railway, the Changji Railway, or the Liaodong and Shandong Railway, these railways can wait for the Mobei Railway, Northwest Railway, Central Plains Railway and Kaihan Railway. We will discuss it after the construction of the Yunnan-Vietnam and Sichuan railways is completed.”

"Now that the imperial court continues to expand the railway, it is not the imperial court's money that is used, but the people's money in the bank."

“It’s easy to spend the money, but it’s hard to earn it back.”

"The imperial court is still burdened with millions of pounds of interest waiting to be repaid. I thought we should proceed steadily instead of trying to become a fat man in one bite."

Xu Shuo was a local official and understood the situation of the Ministry of Revenue, so he believed that the emperor did not agree with the expansion of the railway on the existing basis.

You know, in the past, whenever railways needed to be built, the emperor would send the Ministry of Works to investigate without waiting for the reaction of the ministers. Now that the emperor has not taken any action, it means that there is no need to build these railways.

I have to say, he guessed it right...

Shortly after he finished speaking, footsteps sounded from the side hall.

Not long after, Zhu Gaoxu walked out of the side hall in his regular clothes. Seeing this, everyone bowed deeper.

"Xu Shuo is right, the imperial court has money, but this money is not the imperial court's money, but the money of the people all over the world."

"Building a railway must not only look at the economic aspects, but also the political and military aspects."

"Railways that are not necessary can be postponed temporarily and built slowly."

"It is true that the imperial court can build all the railways you mentioned at once, but you have to think carefully about the consequences of this."

"It's not my nature to eat food and eat food. If it weren't for the purpose of bridging the gap between the north and the south, I wouldn't have built a railway from Jiangpu to the northeast and northwest."

"You can spend money like water, but when the people need the money, I don't know how you will get the money back and give it back to the people?"

As Zhu Gaoxu spoke, he walked up to the golden platform in the main hall of Wuying Palace and sat down on the platform steadily.

The ministers turned around cautiously following the direction he was walking, and breathed a sigh of relief after watching him sit down.

"You are also from common people. You should know how hard it is for people to get their money. Why are you not as understanding as Xu Shuo?"

"I recently read "Zhenguan Politicians", and the chapter "Debating the Rise and Fall" in it is very worthy of my attention. I wonder if you know what this article is about?"

Zhu Gaoxu asked everyone, but no one could tell for a while. Xue Xuan, who was proficient in Confucianism and classics, stood up and bowed:
"Your Majesty is probably talking about the severe drought in the 14th year of Emperor Kaihuang's reign in the Sui Dynasty. Many people were hungry and hungry. At that time, the warehouses were overflowing, but no relief was allowed, and the people were ordered to chase food."

"Wen of the Sui Dynasty did not pity the people but cherished the warehouses. By the end of the year, he calculated that the world's reserves would last for fifty or sixty years. Emperor Yang relied on this wealth, so he was extravagant and immoral, which led to his demise."

"This is also the reason why Emperor Yang lost his country. Anyone who manages a country must accumulate wealth from people and not fill his warehouses."

"The ancients said: "If the people are not enough, which king will be enough?" But if the warehouses can be used to prepare for bad years, there is no need to save money! If the descendants are virtuous, they can protect their world; if they are unworthy, accumulating more warehouses will only benefit their luxury and endanger them. The root of it.”

After Xue Xuan finished speaking, although everyone had not read this article, they could understand the meaning, and they also understood the system of the Sui Dynasty, so they knew what Zhu Gaoxu meant when he mentioned this article.

The charity warehouse in the Sui Dynasty was a national food relief measure. It was undertaken by the state, with all sectors of society responsible for the grain, and disaster relief was oriented to the general public.

However, later Yang Jian felt that the people were short-sighted and had no long-term plan, so he carried out reforms and issued an edict to set up the warehouse in the state or county and manage it by the government.

The original voluntary donation has become a tax that must be paid, and is divided into three levels of tax: upper, middle and lower according to the situation of the people. Among them, the upper household pays one stone, the middle household seven dou, and the lower household four dou.

This compulsory donation system has its own problems, but as long as it can provide normal disaster relief, it is still a good system.

However, in the 14th year of the founding of the Emperor, the people suffered from famine and begged Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty to open a warehouse to release grain. However, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty did not issue an order to open the warehouse. As a result, countless people died of famine, but the treasury of the Sui Dynasty was greatly reduced. Becoming more abundant.

Under the operation of such a system, the money and grain saved during the Kaihuang years was enough to run the political team of the Sui Dynasty for fifty or sixty years.

However, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty's idea failed to come to fruition, because Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty relied on the abundant treasury and continued to spend, squandering all the money and food that was originally enough to run the Sui Dynasty for fifty or sixty years.

In the end, the Sui Dynasty was destroyed, the people were left with nothing, and everything was in vain.

Of course, this disaster relief in the 14th year of the founding of the Emperor was originally a method used by Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty to take the opportunity to reform and promote Luoyang. However, this method cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, so Zhu Gaoxu was very disdainful.

He immediately asked Xue Xuan to explain this article, just to tell the ministers not to think that the money deposited by the people in the bank belonged to the court, and that they should not think that the money could be used casually.

This was what Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty thought at the beginning, but in reality the people rebelled because of heavy taxes and lack of relief for famines, and the huge Sui Dynasty collapsed.

As a bachelor of the palace, if they don't even understand this truth, then Zhu Gaoxu will have to consider changing a group of people.

"I, my lord, would like to be taught..."

At Zhu Gaoxu's reminder, Wang Hui and others bowed and saluted one after another. Zhu Gaoxu didn't know whether they really understood or pretended to understand. In short, it was enough that his meaning was conveyed.

The cabinet he needs is only a cabinet to give him advice, not a cabinet to help him make decisions.

"Okay, it's time for lunch. You go to the main kitchen to have lunch and then deal with government affairs."

Zhu Gaoxu stood up and walked back to the side hall. The ministers bowed and sang one after another, and then left the Wuying Hall.

After they left, Zhu Gaoxu went back to the side hall and sat down. Yi Shiha poured tea for him and said at the same time:
"This Wang Hui and Xu Shuo know each other, but their political views are completely different."

Zhu Gaoxu nodded and commented at the same time:
"Xu Shuo still pays attention to hard work, but Wang Hui doesn't care about this. All he wants is support."

"In addition, it can be seen today that the ten-year education under the New Deal still underestimates Chinese studies. This point must be strengthened."

"If Chinese studies are not strong, it will be difficult to assimilate the foreigners with culture. The Ming Dynasty cannot be a reckless man with a strong body but a stupid mind."

"I will go to the Ministry of Rites to remind you." Yi Shiha agreed, and Zhu Gaoxu also touched his mustache and short beard.

"What has my father been busy with lately?"

"The Supreme Emperor is recuperating, but according to the report from the imperial doctor at the Daming Palace, the Supreme Emperor is in very good health and there is no serious problem."

Yi Shiha responded to Zhu Gaoxu, and Zhu Gaoxu also nodded and said: "As long as he is in good health, let him take good care of himself. In addition, the construction of the Mobei Railway should always tell him the progress and give him hope, so that he can be happier on weekdays."

Zhu Di is sixty-four years old. According to history, he should have been seriously ill when he was sixty-one or twelve years old. He probably had a premonition that he might not live long, so he launched consecutive attacks in less than four years. Three expeditions to the north.

However, at the moment, Zhu Di may be in good health and not suffering from any diseases because he retired relatively early.

In Zhu Gaoxu's heart, he still hopes that Zhu Di can live longer. After all, there are fewer and fewer people with whom he can talk.

Thinking of this, he exhaled a breath, closed his eyes and rested for a moment, and then began to deal with the memorials handled by the cabinet.

While he was processing the memorial, Wang Hui and Xu Shuo, who were walking out of Wuying Hall and heading to the big kitchen, also deliberately slowed down their pace.

Although Yang Pu and others noticed it, they did not want to stay and left quickly.

Watching them walk away, Wang Hui stopped and looked at Xu Shuo with a frown.

"Meng Ming, you should support me."

Wang Hui was talking about what just happened. Xu Shuo had a complicated expression when he heard this, but he still explained: "It is useless for me to support this matter. Besides, you should know better than me why I can manage politics in Wuying Palace. What I want to do is I’m speaking for His Majesty, not you.”

"If I help you, it's not helping you, but actually hurting you."

"That said, it doesn't have to be so conclusive!" Wang Hui interrupted.

"Is there something wrong with what I said?"

Xu Shuo was explaining, but Wang Hui was angry that he didn't favor him.

Both of them are high-ranking people, who can bear to be targeted?

Even the old bamboo horse brothers, when they come to this temple, they have to distinguish between you and me.

"Don't forget, you and I were born in Shandong, but belong to Bohai. If you want to show your nobility, I won't stop you, but you should think about it carefully. The burden of the Ming Dynasty is carried by our group, otherwise we will only rely on the people in Jiangnan." Chongzhi, I’m afraid I can’t even implement the New Deal now.”

What Wang Hui said was a bit unpleasant. After hearing this, Xu Shuo raised his hands and bowed to Wuying Hall not far away.

"Only Your Majesty can bear the burden of the Ming Dynasty. Your Majesty can bring out old people and new people, so you can take care of yourself!"

After the words fell, Xu Shuo passed Wang Hui and walked towards the main kitchen. Wang Hui looked at his back angrily, but he did not dare to refute directly, so he could only endure his temper and follow him.

(End of this chapter)