Wentang

Chapter 630 Grassland Governance Plan
"Forty days ago, when Tuli and Suni lost their fight, our cavalry of the Tang Dynasty officially took over Iron Mountain, and more than half of the territory of Eastern Turkistan has been owned by me." Li Jing, the privy envoy, stood in front of the map and held a baton. All about the current situation:
"The latest news came ten days ago. Suni Shi, Tu Li and others have stopped fighting, and there are signs of peace talks to jointly resist our Great Tang."

"After the deduction of the General Staff Headquarters, the plan of sitting on the mountain and watching the tigers gradually eat away is no longer in line with the current situation. We should decisively send troops to completely wipe out the Turkic remnants and bring the northern grasslands under our rule."

"Cough, cough, cough..." Chen Shuda coughed violently for a while before panting and asked, "Tu Li, Suni Shi and others have a deep hatred, so it's unlikely that they will let go of their prejudices and unite against our army, right?"

"They don't need to join forces to fight against our army. They need to stop fighting separately so that we can do nothing." Li Jing continued:

"It will be difficult for them to have any effect if they are prepared to continue to divide. Rather than procrastinating like this, it is better to completely eliminate them and end this war."

Li Ji interjected: "This war has lasted for seven years, and the Turkic land has been reduced to ruins, and the population is less than one in ten. There is no oil to squeeze."

"Although the consumption of my Tang Dynasty is much smaller, the soldiers and horses have to consume a lot of money and food every year. And the soldiers are exhausted after years of fighting. It is time to end this war and let the soldiers rest."

"What about the specific opinions of the staff headquarters?" Li Shimin asked.

Li Jing replied: "Send out the Shenwu Army in two ways to blitz the sweat tents of the Turkic tribes, try to kill the enemy, only to break the enemy's resistance, and then the army will crush their ethnic groups and occupy their land."

The Shenwu Army is the original Wanqi. In recent years, it has expanded to 5 people and changed its name to the Shenwu Army.

Now when the emperors and ministers of the Tang Dynasty hold small meetings, they no longer say anything about crusading against injustice. Opening and closing their mouths is all about profit, killing and looting, and no one thinks it is abnormal.

"How to manage the land after the occupation? It can't be like the previous dynasties. After defeating the enemy, you can retreat and give the land to others. As a result, new powerful enemies will emerge in a few years." Yang Shidao said.

"How to govern depends on the wishes of the sages and ministers." Li Jing said.

The separation of the military and the government, even if they are both civil and military, they must take this into account.You can give advice to the emperor and ministers in private, but when governing, the civil servants must be the main ones, and they can at most assist from the side.

Li Shimin is very satisfied with the Privy Council's behavior of avoiding suspicion, and the separation of military and government has gradually become popular.But governing the country is not just a matter of civil servants, and sometimes you have to listen to the opinions of military officials, so he said: "Now it's time to discuss countermeasures, and everyone can speak freely."

Only then did Li Jing and others come up with their own countermeasures, which were very simple: military control.

As the name suggests, it is to send troops to suppress the grasslands.

As soon as this idea came out, all the ministers shook their heads. It is indeed a good solution in the short term, but it cannot be used for a long time.And in this way, the whole north will become Jimi Prefecture, so it's better to just let it go.

Even if they are left alone, at least the foreign races in the grassland are unlikely to pose any threat to Datang within a hundred years.

Li Jing and other military representatives were not angry. They knew the loopholes in this plan when they proposed it, but... After analyzing all the methods, only this seemingly unreliable method is the most feasible.

So they didn't express anything else when they were denied by the civil officials. They just said: Civil Affairs is not our director. I really can't think of a better way. The sage and the ministers should decide on their own.

The civil servants began to discuss countermeasures, and after a long time...they found embarrassingly that the only way to suppress the situation was to garrison the army.

The registered household Qimin sent officials to govern the grassland people?Hehe.Nomads, if you are here today, you will be hundreds of miles away tomorrow. What kind of family do you make up?Can't the yamen migrate with the herdsmen?

And the grassland aliens will listen to your Central Plains officials?He might have had his head cut off in the middle of the night.

Move the people of the Central Plains into the grassland?Can the climate adapt, can the Central Plains people who are accustomed to farming adapt to herding life, will the Central Plains people be assimilated by the grassland people in turn after a few hundred years...

These issues must be considered.

After discussion and discussion, only sending troops to suppress is the most reliable method.

Li Shimin is also one of the first two big. Only then did he understand why the Han Dynasty defeated the Huns but left Qianli Prairie alone.It's not that I don't want to take care of it, it's that there is no way.

But he is really unwilling to leave it alone like this. This is a land spanning tens of thousands of miles. It is too wasteful to leave it alone.

Moreover, after the demise of the Eastern Turks, there were still large tribes such as Xue Yantuo, Khitan, and Huihe. Once they withdrew from the grassland, this place would soon become a pasture for these alien races.

Don't wait a hundred years, maybe 20 years later they will become the second and third Turks, and in turn invade the border of the Tang Dynasty.

However, limited by the times, he couldn't think of a good way to break his head.

Rubbing his temples, he subconsciously scanned the crowd, hoping that person would come up with a good idea to solve this problem again.

However, to his disappointment, he did not see that figure.

He also knew why the other party didn't come, but when he was agitated at this moment, he casually said: "Why didn't Yue Shan come? Didn't you inform him?"

Everyone looked at each other in blank dismay, didn't the sage ask this knowingly, he asked for a wedding leave for honeymoon, and the sage personally approved the vacation, he must have not been notified of this meeting, sage, what do you mean by asking?
But no one dared to say these words, everyone looked at me and I looked at you, no one spoke.

Moreover, these people felt a little uncomfortable. When the saint encountered a problem, the first thing he thought of was Yue Shan... Doesn't it seem that we are too incompetent?

Changsun Wuji had already become numb, he secretly wrestled with Yue Shan for several years, and finally found that it was really meaningless.So he was indifferent to the emperor's question.

At this time, Jing Junhong, who was sitting at the end, got up and said: "Sage, I asked Yue Hou about this matter yesterday, and he gave some suggestions, I don't know if it is feasible."

Everyone understood, saying that they were going to ask Yue Shan for advice, but in fact they were tipping off the news.He is the core figure of the Yue family, and it is normal to tell Yue Shan about every move of the court.

What everyone was more curious about was what kind of idea Yue Shan gave.

Li Shimin was overjoyed, and said, "How did Cuilan say that?"

"City building, immigration, dividing pastures to restrict movement, and imposing culture and education." Jingjun Hong said.

As soon as these words came out, many people showed signs of enlightenment. Li Jing and the others even went directly to the map and pointed at it as if they were looking for something.

Xiao Yu was more straightforward, saying: "Don't be a fool, tell me how to do it."

"Choose a suitable place to build a city, and build a large number of forts outside the city to station a strong army to guard the city and deter the aliens from all directions. These cities and fortresses are like nails nailed to the grassland..."

"Immigrated from the Central Plains to the grassland to reclaim the land, and the food produced can be eaten by the garrison, which solved the problem of military food..."

"Then divide the surrounding pastures into fixed pastures with the city and fortress as the center, and distribute these small pastures to the prairie people in units of families or tribes..."

"It is also stipulated that grassland people are not allowed to leave their pastures at will, and those who leave the pasture without the permission of the court are regarded as fugitive slaves. Everyone can arrest them as slaves, or escort them to the Yamen for rewards."

"Then it is to organize households and Qimin, and slowly educate them to make them ideologically the citizens of the Tang Dynasty, so that the problem of the grassland can be solved."

"Okay." It was Li Jing who couldn't help but applauded loudly, and then he woke up and laughed endlessly.

"It's a good strategy." Fang Xuanling praised: "Prairie people live by water and grass, and it is almost impossible to govern. Yue Hou proposed to divide the grassland into areas for each tribe to designate pastures, which can restrict their movement. In this way, we can give They set up household Qimin..."

"It's more than that, the most subtle part is building the city and the fortress." Yang Shidao also said in amazement: "The mutual support of the city and the fortress can ensure the safety of the immigrants from the Central Plains."

"With the city officials, there will be a foundation, and they can rely on these cities to exercise management over the grassland people. Central Plains immigrants can also pass the Central Plains customs to the grassland people through the cities, and let them accept Wanghua..."

"Foreigners who leave their grassland without permission are regarded as fugitive slaves. Whoever captures them will be their slaves. This is also very meaningful. Presumably there is no shortage of people who rob us in the grasslands. When the time comes...hehe."

The more you talk about it, the more you discuss it, the more you think this method is better.Li Shimin was also very happy, this son-in-law never let him down.

At this time Li Jing recovered from his embarrassment and said, "Let's see, sage, here...here...here...a total of nine places, all of which are plains with rivers passing by, are the most suitable for building cities and reclaiming land."

"One of the crisscrossed nine lands is under attack, and at least two cities can quickly support them, so that they will not be reduced to isolated cities..."

"And here." Li Ji clicked on the northwest corner of the map and said: "You can use this place as a bridgehead, and use it as a springboard to explore the Western Regions in the future."

Li Jing looked at the map and said in admiration: "The British Palace has thought carefully. This city is not far from Jinshan. If it develops well in three to five years, it should be able to support an army of [-] people. It will indeed provide convenience for the operation of the Western Regions."

Li Ji said politely: "Duke Wei praised you, I was also inspired by you to think of this place."

"Haha...well, well." Li Shimin couldn't help laughing and said: "Everyone, don't be modest. Everyone said it is good, so we will use this plan to govern the grassland. Discuss with the Privy Council and the Political Affairs Hall, and come up with specific plans as soon as possible. Charter."

"Here." Everyone said in unison.

"Saint, the cost of building cities and immigrants is very high, and the national treasury cannot afford to build ten cities." Zhang Hong, the new Minister of the Household Department, said.

Then everyone stopped talking and all looked at Li Shimin.

Li Shimin's face darkened, how could he not understand Zhang Hong's meaning, he just asked him for money, who made the inner treasury have more money than the national treasury.The favorite thing of the previous ministers of the household department is to ask for money from the internal treasury, and they are proud of it.

If any Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs did not ask for money from the internal treasury, no matter how well he did it, he would be laughed at by the officials.Li Shimin was naturally very angry about this, but there was nothing he could do about these people.

Under normal circumstances, he would naturally not give money so easily, but this time he also knew that building ten cities in a row was indeed beyond the capacity of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and even the internal treasury had to spend so much money in batches.

So he didn't make things difficult for Zhang Hong, but said: "Don't worry, I will allocate money and food from the internal treasury to the household department. You can remember it for me. This is the money from the internal treasury. Every penny must be spent. If Let me know who stretched out their hands indiscriminately but you asked."

"Saint, don't worry, I guarantee that every cent will be spent on state affairs. If something goes wrong, you will cut off my head." Zhang Hong patted his chest and said.

The emperor, you still have to coax when it's time to coax, and it's not shameful to ask for money.As for how to spend the money when it arrives at the household department, that is the business of the household department.

"That..." At this time, Jing Junhong stood up hesitantly, and said hesitantly.

For Li Shimin, who brought good news to him, he still liked it very much, and said in a gentle voice, "Just talk about it."

"Yue Hou said that it would be time-consuming and labor-intensive for the imperial court to do all the immigration. It is best to mobilize the enthusiasm of the people and use the power of the people to do this." Jing Junhong said.

"Of course we also know this truth, but the northern grassland is a place of bitter cold, and there are not enough benefits, so how can we mobilize the enthusiasm of the people." Zhang Hongdao.

Others also nodded. The northern grasslands are indeed bitter, and the people are poor. There is no other business to do except cattle and sheep.

The cattle and sheep business is not so easy to do. It is too troublesome to transport from the north to the Central Plains. If one is not good, it will even lose money.

So don't look at the fact that the North Market is very profitable. The real participants are wealthy businessmen, and ordinary businessmen rarely run here.

It is very difficult to develop these ten cities by relying on these wealthy merchants alone.Unless you find other profit points, you can attract more ordinary businessmen.

As soon as I thought of this, I heard Jing Junhong said: "Do you still remember the woolen sweater?"

Many people touched their clothes subconsciously, and there was a woolen dress inside, which was indeed very warm, and the most important thing was that it fitted the body without being bulky, so it was so comfortable.

"If the imperial court liberalizes the wool trading market, allows ordinary merchants to go to the north to buy wool, and even encourages people from the Central Plains to go to the north to raise sheep and collect wool, it should attract many people to go to the north."

Hearing this, everyone would be a fool if they didn't understand what he meant.

Wool cloth, although the raw material is produced from sheep, is a business many times larger than the sheep itself.

Ancient cloth is a hard currency harder than gold and silver, and even cloth can be directly used as money.why?Rare.

The combination of linen and silk is not enough, and now there is another kind of cotton cloth, which is still the same.

The most important thing is not the fabric. Don’t have too many clothes. If you save a little, you can wear it for decades, and even pass it on to future generations.

The key is something to keep out the cold.

How did the ancients keep out the cold?Rich people wear fur, while poor people sew kapok and straw into their clothes for the winter.

When Yueshan introduced cotton to the Central Plains, cotton clothes and quilts quickly became popular and became the most important thing to keep out the cold.However, limited by cotton production, a large number of people still rely on "shaking" to keep out the cold.

A sweater is obviously a good thing to keep out the cold.

When Yueshan invented the sweater, he gave a few sets to his close friends, and it didn't take long for it to become a must-have item for the rich and powerful.

It's not that everyone doesn't want to popularize it, but that there is not so much wool.

So people gradually ignored the economic significance behind the sweater, and just regarded it as a relatively rare thing to keep out the cold.

Now Jing Junhong reminded me to react.

Yes, sweaters are a big business, and the huge profits are enough to attract folk forces to enter the grasslands.

Thinking of this, everyone became even more excited.

……

The strategy and management plan for the northern grasslands was quickly drawn up, and the imperial court implemented it in full swing.

These have nothing to do with Yue Shan, after he gave advice through Jing Junhong's mouth, he didn't care about it, and spent the whole day with his little wife to live a two-person world.

Just when he was indulging in the gentleness, another major event that caused a sensation in the court happened, which forced him to end his vacation early.

Seventeen officials of Dali Temple jointly impeached Dali Temple Qing Wang Zhen for corrupting the law and releasing prisoners privately.

Originally, this had nothing to do with Yueshan, but...the dozen or so officials all came from Weishui Academy Law School.

(End of this chapter)