At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 332, The Grand Canal and Military Reform

Then Zhou Zhang pointed at the map and said: "Now the Jianghuai area has not only become the granary of the Han Dynasty, but also the center of the Han Dynasty's industry. Busy traffic is the state of Chen County at this time."

He pointed to the Central Plains area and said: "But the connection between the two places can only rely on the gap, and the gap was started by King Hui of Wei during the Warring States Period. After it was built, it was expanded by the Qin Dynasty and became the main artery connecting the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers in the Central Plains. But as we With the establishment of the Han Dynasty, this artery is far from being able to meet the development of our Jianghuai region.

This place has blocked the flow of goods from Chen County to the Central Plains. The price of grain in the Central Plains is more than twice that of the Jianghuai land. However, because of the need to transport goods, the food in the Jianghuai land cannot support the Central Plains. The gap has become a flaw for me as a big man. "

"The prime minister plans to deepen and widen the gap and build docks in the counties and counties along the way so that the imperial court's five-thousand-stone transport ship can run unimpeded in the Grand Canal, speeding up the flow of goods and completely opening up the connection between the Jianghuai River and the Central Plains. ”

"This project is extremely large and the task is extremely important. After you two became the prefects of Chen County and Donghai County, your main focus will be on this project."

Xiao He and Cao Shen saluted and said, "No!"

On October 9, the fifth year of the Han Dynasty, Chang'an City, Zhangtai Palace.

The sages of the world sit here, the three nobles and nine ministers of the Han Dynasty sit on the other side, and the county guards report to all the sages with their achievements this year.

The first is the annual report of the Han court made by the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty.

All the sages frowned when they heard this. Although the Han army was small, the cost was extremely high, accounting for almost a quarter of the military expenditure. Forget it if it was a war era, but now the Han has no enemies, so big The military expenditure is really unnecessary.

Those who stayed in Dahan were all honest and responsible people, so the public security was naturally improving rapidly.

On the other hand, the local sages nodded with satisfaction after hearing this. After rounds of purges by the Han Dynasty, the aristocratic and powerful forces in the entire world suffered heavy losses. This is how the local forces went. One after another, the power of the aristocratic and powerful forces declined. , the authority of county governors and magistrates is very important. Nowadays, the powerful Han Dynasty is trembling even when they see a county magistrate.

After Chen Lin, Tingwei Wu Guang reported to the sages how many evildoers the Han had eliminated this year, how many rangers they arrested, how many people were exiled, and how many people were killed. How much criminal cases have dropped, how much the world's environment has improved.

Then Chen Lin looked at where the eunuchs were sitting and said: "You don't want to be such a hero. You are unscrupulous and violate laws and disciplines. You should do things for the Han people honestly. Don't stretch out your hands. If you do, you will be arrested!"

Now the caravans of the Han Dynasty dare to transport goods alone, and even children and women dare to come out of the city. The public security environment in the world is rapidly improving. To exaggerate, it is not an exaggeration to say that people do not pick up items on the road and do not close their homes at night. After all, in the past few years, the entire Han Dynasty has cleared out hundreds of thousands of rangers, allowing these people to use their talents to explore the vast world outside the Han Dynasty.

All the county guards felt their hearts palpitation.

Projects that cost money can always be unpleasant, especially the cost of the Han army. Many are unnecessary in their eyes.

It was precisely because of such good feelings that the sages recognized Wu Guang's political achievements and applauded him one after another.

Although sages like Jing Yi have already heard about it in the monthly newspaper, they are still excited at this time. There is nothing happier than seeing their country becoming more and more prosperous. The Han Dynasty is already in a prosperous age, especially in this prosperous age. And their participation.

After Wu Guang finished speaking, the sages all applauded.

After the military, the imperial censor Chen Lin began to make a report to the sages. He listed how many big tigers and protective umbrellas the censor's palace had captured this year, and how many unqualified Han officials were dismissed.

Then he looked at the emperor on the high platform. Although the emperor was strict with them, he had to admit that the world was getting better and better day by day under the rule of the Han Dynasty. Even the Jing family was growing rapidly in this prosperous age. It would be better if the emperor took care of them and abolished the laws that suppressed them. That would be a perfect emperor.

After Zhou Zhang made the report, Wu Sheng, the general who joined the army, reported to all the wise men: "Our Han Dynasty has a standing army of 8 people, of which General Zhendong leads 1 troops, and General Zhenbei leads 1 standing troops stationed in Yunzhong County. The governor of Monan The government stationed 1 cavalry in Monan~~~~. The Han Navy added 24 thousand-material warships and built 5 stone docks that can accommodate 30 warships. Last year, the total military expenditure was gold. "

The comparison table is even more obvious. Land, food, finance, etc. are all showing rapid growth.

"I can't imagine that the great Han Dynasty entered the prosperous age just after the founding of the country." Jing Yi murmured to himself.

Comparing last year's financial budget with the tasks completed this year, it can be said that Dahan has completed it very well. The goals set last year were generally complete, and some projects were even completed faster than expected.

They are fully aware of this matter. Under the successive purges of the Han Dynasty, bandits, horse thieves, water thieves, and robbers cannot be said to have disappeared, but it can also be said to be very few. All kinds of criminals died and were exiled. exile.

Finally, Chen Lin concluded: "Next year, our imperial censor's office will increase local supervision. Han officials who dare to violate laws and disciplines in the local area will be dealt with together without mercy."

It is a great good thing for the Han officials to keep themselves safe, and their family property can be protected.

Zhou Zhang told all the sages how many acres of land the Han Dynasty had opened up this year, how much the population had increased, how much money and food had increased, how many roads, straight roads, tracks had been repaired, how many canals had been built, etc.

Then came the large department of agriculture, merchants and farmers, who reported on the development of agriculture in Han Dynasty this year, such as how many canals were repaired, how much wasteland was reclaimed, how many waterwheels and windmills were added in the world, how much grain production increased, etc.

Finally, the merchant farmer said: "Judging from the situation in the past few years, building water conservancy facilities and fertilizer are the fastest ways to increase production. After you return to your county, you sages should lead the people to build more canals, compost materials, and buy struvite." , to help people increase their yields and harvests.”

"No!" said all the sages.

Most of these people are large local landowners. The benefits of water conservancy facilities and struvite have been recognized by them, and they will do it even if the merchants and farmers don't say so.

Then came Qin Bo, the Shaofu's order.

All the sages frowned when they saw Qin Bo, even though they all knew about the four-hour working system and the "Artisan Law" proposed by the emperor.

But if the emperor has such thoughts, there must be villains around him who are causing trouble. As for this villain, the sages present thought he was Qin Bo, so naturally the sages would not give Qin Bo a good look.

Qin Bo didn't care, but said to the sages expressionlessly that this year the Shaofu has refined 50 million jins of iron and 600 jins of steel. The Shaofu controls a textile factory. One hundred and thirty, with an annual production of 36 million pieces of cloth, 25 cash crop plantations, sugar workshops, and seven large salt drying fields~~~~~ The Shaofu made a profit of gold.

The young man's political performance was excellent, but the whole audience was silent. Although the sages recognized Qin Bo's ability, they could not change their view of Qin Bo as a villain.

In the following time, the nine ministers of the Han Dynasty and the local county governor spoke one after another. The sages present either applauded or nodded in approval.

It can be said that this day is the time to announce the results obtained last year in the Han Dynasty court.

The officials were as happy as the students who got good grades, showing off happily, and the sages were also excited when they heard it.

The first day of the Sage Meeting was spent in an atmosphere of good for you, good for me, and good for everyone.

The next day, the atmosphere at the meeting to submit the project became tense. Although the big man was financially wealthy this year, he never had enough money to spend. If others got more, he would get less. From this day on, everyone is a competitor.

What no one expected was that Prime Minister Zhou Zhang was actually the first person to apply for the project. He hung up a drawing of the Central Plains region so that everyone present could see clearly: "The Jianghuai region has developed rapidly in recent years. A large amount of goods need to enter the Central Plains through the gap, but the gap is too narrow to meet the development of the Jianghuai region. Nowadays, it has become normal for cargo ships to block waterways.

The Prime Minister plans to expand the gap to five times the width and three times the depth to accommodate the passage of 5000 stone transport ships, completely opening up the connection between the Yangtze River, Huaihe River, and other major rivers. This grand canal, which is thousands of miles long, will completely connect The connection between the South and the Central Plains allows the entire world's food and goods to move at the lowest cost. "

Everyone looked at Zhou Zhang in surprise.

First, Zhou Zhang, who was doing nothing but doing nothing, would actually start such a large project.
The second is that this project is so big that it is unbelievable. In the Spring and Autumn and Warring States centuries, there have not been many big projects like the Zhouzhang canal. Even infrastructure madmen like Bao Qin have built big projects like Zhouzhang. There are only a handful of them, only the Great Wall and Chidao can compare.

Xu Fan asked: "Has the Prime Minister calculated how much money this project will cost?"

Zhou Zhangdao: "The Grand Canal project takes 5 years. It needs to recruit 4 people along the way every year. It starts during the slack period. The construction time is 6 months every year. According to the salary of a citizen is 500 yuan, the salary of a citizen is 12000 yuan every year. Gold, the civilian ration is calculated as 6 dan for 10 months. Twenty thousand civilians will consume 40 dan of rations every year, and the carriages, wheelbarrows, shovels and other equipment required for the project will cost 1500 gold.”

"The one-year project of the Grand Canal consumes 13500 gold and 40 shi of grain. The entire project costs 67500 gold and 200 million shi of grain."

Then Zhou Zhang said firmly: "With the finances of the Han Dynasty at this time, we can support such a project."

Zhou Zhangdu calculated extremely carefully. Xu Fan looked at the sages and said: "Those who agree with the Prime Minister's Grand Canal plan can raise their hands."

Jing Yi and other wise men raised their hands. Zhou Zhang's grand canal project is extremely beneficial to the counties in the south. Jingyi, for example, often encounters ship jams. After the grand canal is opened, his caravan can make more money.

Xu Fan said: "The Prime Minister's Grand Canal plan has passed."

Then he looked at the superior and ordered Zhang Cang to say: "Include the Prime Minister's Grand Canal plan into our Han Dynasty's financial budget."

"promise!"

After Zhou Zhang, Wu Sheng stood up and told all the sages the reform plan of the Han army, which was to have an 8-strong standing army of the Han Dynasty, which would alternate between compulsory soldiers and volunteers to ensure the combat effectiveness of the Han army.

After listening to Wu Sheng's words, Jing Yi said: "How can the combat effectiveness of the army be guaranteed by carrying out reforms like this?"

Other sages also looked at Wu Sheng with puzzled faces. People in this era will be exposed to certain military knowledge actively or passively. There is one of the simplest truths in military common sense. The combat effectiveness of new recruits is not as good as that of veterans, otherwise they will There is no such thing as an elite teacher.

After Wu Sheng's reforms, the imperial court would release the veterans it had worked hard to train for three years back to the people. At the same time, it would spend a lot of money to recruit new soldiers and train them. Many sages even looked at Wu Sheng like a fool. Sheng, no one with normal IQ would do such a thing.

Wu Sheng noticed these glances and said a little angrily: "After this reform, the combat effectiveness of the Han army will only become stronger and stronger, not worse. Now there are soldiers over 40 years old in the standing army of the Han Dynasty. They were all ten years ago Although those who join the army have rich combat experience, they are older and their physical strength can no longer keep up with the requirements of the Han army. Without rotation, there will only be more and more such veterans in our Han army, and their combat effectiveness will become worse and worse. ”

"Although the new recruits do not have much combat experience, they are young and strong. With a little training, they will become qualified warriors. During the three years, the court will observe the selection and ensure that every remaining soldier is an elite. The elite among them, and these retired soldiers can bring their rich combat experience back to the people. When a large-scale battle does occur, the court can immediately recall them to form a powerful army. "

"After the imperial court is reformed in this way, it can complete the replacement of the army at the minimum cost, maintain strong combat effectiveness, and greatly save military expenditures."

Jing Yi frowned and said: "But after this kind of reform, the standing army will have to pay salaries. This cost is not small. You must know that our Han Dynasty's treatment of soldiers is already high enough. There is no reason to give them any more salaries, let alone pay them back." 800 yuan per month.”

In the Han Dynasty, even the standing army had no salary, and some only had a monthly allowance of 200 yuan. Of course, not all of them had this number. Soldiers in the frontiers had a higher salary of 300-400 yuan, and those in Guanzhong and the mainland had lower salaries.

The soldiers were not dissatisfied. First, the imperial court allocated hundreds of acres of land, and the output of these lands was their salary. Second, the Han army had good welfare and treatment. Their food met the standards of small landowners, and their clothing met the standards of large landowners. Not to mention the 200 yuan allowance, even if there is no money, the standard of food and clothing is enough to make the soldiers want to become the standing army of the Han Dynasty and fight for the Han Dynasty.

Taking a class as a standard, the clothing, food and treatment of the Han army are only lower than those of the nobles. In addition, the various welfare benefits of the Han Dynasty are tilted towards the military, such as becoming a Han official, becoming a craftsman in an official workshop, etc., as long as one becomes The standing army is equivalent to becoming the middle and upper class of the Han Dynasty.

Jing Yi and others believed that the treatment of the Han army was already superior enough and should not continue to increase.

Wu Sheng frowned and said: "Times have changed. Now the common people of the Han Dynasty have land. If the soldiers who join the army are not given salary, they will have no motivation to fight."

Jing Yi snorted coldly: "Taking away 100 acres of land from my big man is equivalent to selling my life to the big man, not to mention the treatment the big man gives them. The daily food expenses alone are 8 yuan, and the big man has 1200 yuan." The standing army's annual food expenditure exceeds 9600 gold, and the cost of military uniforms for each soldier reaches gold. This is still the internal price of my big man. If you buy these military uniforms in Dongshi, I am afraid it will cost to gold. Money, my annual expenditure on military uniforms reaches gold.”

"The eighty thousand standing army alone exceeds thirty thousand gold in terms of food and drink."

"After the restructuring, the volunteer officer's salary is 800 yuan, which is close to 3 yuan a year. According to the three-year rotation, the annual salary expenditure increases by yuan. Are we afraid that we will have to pay more for the resettlement of retired soldiers?"

Wu Shengdao: "My Han soldiers will be paid resettlement fees when they retire, and this money is indispensable."

Jing Yidao: "It used to take almost 10 years to retire, but now it only takes three years, and to retired soldiers have to be resettled every year. Military expenditures have not increased, but local financial expenditures have increased.

General, you are not teasing us. With military reforms like yours, the imperial court’s military expenditure will soar to more than 20 gold, accounting for one-third of the imperial court’s fiscal revenue. The military expenditure is already so high before the war is even started. This is really starting to happen. Can the imperial court bear the war? Do you think this is appropriate? "

The soldiers of the Han Dynasty were not only well-paid when they joined the army, but also were well-paid when they retired. As long as they had participated in fierce battles, the rewards for soldiers when they retired were generally between 5,000 and 10,000 yuan. If retired soldiers were treated in this way, they would receive another 20,000 to 30,000 gold in a year.

Wu Sheng retorted: "Of course it is appropriate. We are not in the Warring States Period, so wars are unlikely to occur frequently. Besides, in today's world, which force is worthy of my full strength?"

"As long as we maintain the strong combat effectiveness of our standing army, our Han general's palace is enough to destroy a medium-sized vassal state during the Warring States period."

"In the absence of a strong enough enemy, this method of rotating into the army is the best way to maintain the combat effectiveness of our Han army."

"Unless you, General, are willing to lower the military salary targets, we will never agree to a reform that will increase financial expenditure by 8 gold."

"Brother Jing is right. In the past, Han soldiers were treated a little better during the war, which was reasonable, but now that the world is at peace, I, a big man, should put my swords and guns into the treasury and release my horses to Nanshan. There is no reason to continue to increase military expenditures."

"There are countless ordinary people in our country who are hungry, but the army has silk clothes and meat, but they are not satisfied. They are so greedy and unbridled. Don't you feel ashamed, general."

Wu Sheng was not good at arguing, and his entire face turned red.

Xu Fan said: "The Han army can solve the source of military expenditures of 5 gold. Are you willing to pass a military reform decree?"

Jing Yi and others looked at each other, but since the emperor had already spoken, they naturally could not object, although they did not know where the 5 gold military expenditure came from.

With Xu Fan's strong support, Wu Sheng's military reform decree was passed.

(End of this chapter)