Red House Shoufu

Chapter 360

The biggest problem with the Central Plains dynasty's conquest of the grasslands was that it was difficult to annihilate them in one fell swoop.

In the vast grassland and desert, the grassland people on horseback are more mobile than the Central Plains infantry.During the five northern expeditions during the Longsheng period, only two opportunities were found to encircle and annihilate the main forces of Wala and Tatar. In the end, because of insufficient cavalry and the long logistics line, they had to surrender.

This time, the 200,000 Oirat army was dragged to Kaipingwei. After the crisis, it was the best time to encircle and wipe out the main force of Oirat.

The emperor has always wanted to find an opportunity to prove the correctness of the Supreme Emperor Zen in himself. He wanted to be as good as his father in martial arts and martial arts, so naturally he would not miss this opportunity.

However, as Wen Tongxuan said, in the past few years due to natural disasters and man-made disasters, the imperial court has spent a large amount of money on disaster relief and peace rebellion. Even if a few sums of money were obtained from the Japanese kingdom, it sounds like a lot, but in fact it was scattered in this ten thousand li territory. It's like throwing a stone into the ocean without even a single wave.

"My lord said that eating horse chews for hundreds of thousands of King Qin's soldiers is indeed a job that costs money..."

Lin Shu took over the warrant to transfer money from Wen Tongxuan, and no longer made things difficult for the poor Minister of the Household Department.

He only stayed in the lobby of the household department for a while just now, and in less than a quarter of an hour, all the temple yamen who came to the household department to ask for money could line up outside the gate of the household department.

He bowed and said goodbye: "Then I will go back first and arrange someone to pick up the silver. As for the rest, I will find a way to raise it myself!"

Wen Tongxuan sighed, "Jinyu might as well go to His Majesty to have a look. There should be several million taels of silver in the inner treasury. When the household department has more money, the old man will send some taels to Zhihe Yamen."

"Thank you, my lord, for your advice, and I will take my leave."

As soon as Lin Shu left, Wen Tongxuan changed his appearance.He smiled and pushed open an extremely secret door, and walked in.It is full of brand new wooden boxes, each of which has not even been painted, and still maintains the texture of the log.

"It can be regarded as a gift. With this money, at least one or two years will not be short of money."

……

The conversation in the Palace of Qinzheng was going well, but the emperor suddenly turned dark.

Lin Shu handed over the papers on the flood in Guanzhong, and at the same time took out a series of strategies approved by the cabinet, such as river control, disaster relief, and production recovery.
"Lack of money, go to the household department to ask for it, what are you doing here?"

"Your Majesty, Mr. Wen has clearly arranged the money for the household department. He only allocated 1 million taels of silver to the minister, and there is no more than one tael."

As soon as the emperor heard this, he understood that Wen Tongxuan, the old brave man, was playing with his internal treasury.

He asked helplessly, "Isn't 1 million taels not enough for the Guanzhong flood? Last year's flood in the Huaihe River cost less than 1 million taels. Why did you spend so much money this time?"

Lin Shu bowed and replied: "Your Majesty, I don't plan to treat my head and feet this time, and I am going to solve the problem in Guanzhong once and for all. Among them, the treatment of the river can only be regarded as a small part, and more is the recovery. Guanzhong water conservancy, canal repair and well digging, land reclamation and dredging, etc., in order to turn the fertile soil in Guanzhong into a place where the people live and work in peace and contentment, and become the most important rear of the Hexi army."

It has to be said that Lin Shu grasped the most concerned point in the emperor's heart, the original reluctance on his face turned serious, he flipped through the stack of memorials on the table, and looked at them seriously.

Lin Shu's memorial did not have any flowery rhetoric, from the general outline to the detailed rules, almost every sentence is dry.Even the possible problems were listed one by one, and there were suggestions made by several bigwigs in the cabinet's approval.

This Guanzhong strategy is very feasible. Even if it does not achieve the results expected by Lin Shu in the memorial, as long as half of it is achieved, the imperial court's supply line to Hexi can be shortened by half.

Whether it is from Jiangnan or Henan, the long supply line makes 200,000% of the grain and grass wasted on the way of transportation.If Guanzhong can achieve a bumper harvest, Guanzhong alone can meet half of the needs of the [-] troops in Hexi.

Coupled with the military settlements in Longxi, it can basically meet the needs of Hexi, and the court can save the loss caused by long-distance transportation.

The memorial was very thick, and the emperor read it carefully, and asked questions as he read it. It was time for lunch when the monarchs and ministers asked and answered.

After having an imperial meal in the Hall of Qinzheng, the two monarchs and ministers continued to discuss Guan Zhongce.

"According to Lin Qing's intention, Guanzhong can try out this policy of state-owned land and government and private land. How should the land tax and rent be collected?"

Lin Shu solemnly replied: "Your Majesty, as stated in the memorandum, the imperial court leases official land to landless people on an average basis per population. They should be exempted from the land tax and only pay [-]% and [-]% of the rent. Rural evil gentry, rent The land, land tax, and rent together account for [-]% of the people’s annual income, and one year’s cultivation is not enough to meet the needs of the family. Often half the year is full and half the year is famine. Your Majesty, the people of the country should not live like this.”

"Since you are a gentry, how can you get the land tax?"

The emperor was surprised and asked: "Didn't Lin Qing often tell me that the gentry annexed the land, making the land tax available for collection less and less?"

The Great Chu inherited the Ming system, and most of the gentry’s families were well-known, and there were too many tax-free places. Lin Shu had repeatedly advised the emperor to implement the official and gentry payment of food, but the emperor rejected it.

Lin Shu replied with a wry smile: "The common people in the country naturally don't understand the rules set by those evil gentry. If the court does not accept it, it does not mean that the evil gentry will not accept it. As long as they can charge an extra bucket of grain, those evil gentry will try their best to squeeze them out. tenant."

"I see!"

The emperor was not angry. Sitting on the dragon chair all these years, there were too many discrepancies between the information sent by the court and the information inquired by the embroidered guards.

He already understood that there is a huge force in the court trying to isolate the inside and outside, but fortunately there are still many loyal people in the court fighting against it, and because of his hard work, he can be regarded as politically sound and harmonious after a few years.

Lin Shu's strategy in Guanzhong is very good, but if he wants to implement it, he still needs an opportunity, and Lin Shu needs to go to Guanzhong to preside over it himself.

Although there are not many big clans in Guanzhong, there have been mobs in Qin since ancient times, and if they are exploited by those who want to, they may cause riots.

After all, part of the Guanzhong policy touched the interests of the gentry.The policy of equalizing land for low rent and state-owned land alone, if implemented well, can be used as a reference for official land in other regions.

The common people are honest but not stupid. There are low-rent official lands that can be leased. Who will work hard to rent lands, rents, rents, and rents?
As long as this hole is opened, the policy of government and gentry paying food in one package will be implemented in the future, and the land annexation that has plagued several generations of dynasties will be completely and greatly alleviated.

However, it is not the right time at this stage. Hexi has just leveled off, and Guanzhong needs stability.After the emperor put down the memorial, he said to Lin Shu from the bottom of his heart: "The Hexi army is temporarily stationed in the Longxi area, and there must be no chaos in Guanzhong, otherwise the supply of the army will become a big problem. The north is restless, and the main problem of the imperial court at this stage is to completely solve internal worries. Foreign aggression, only in this way can we really free up our hands to carry out reforms."

"I also mean the same thing, so I said in the memorial that within this year, the strategy of harnessing the river and opening up wasteland and digging wells will be carried out first."

Lin Shu nodded and said: "In the autumn planting, you can mix corn and potatoes. First, you can temporarily relieve the refugees caused by the flood in Guanzhong, and use work as relief. At the same time, you will send a supervisory censor to rectify the officials in Guanzhong. Prepare for governance. Elder Wei Ge has already ordered Wang Huan and other censors to go west along the Yellow River, and please His Majesty issue an order to order Shaanxi's chief minister and inspector to cooperate with the local embroidery guards."

"Aiqing is right, I will let the embroidered clothes guards hurry up and send the imperial decree to Shaanxi."

The emperor agreed with Lin Shu's statement that only by clear and bright officials can the strategy of Guanzhong governance be steadily promoted.Otherwise, if you obey the law and violate the law, you might even trip the court in the dark.

After the royal brush finished writing a secret decree, Xia Shouzhong sent it to the cabinet lobby in person.The papers sent by the Chief Envoy of Shaanxi have too many problems. The emperor does not trust the integrity of officials in the court, and the purge of officials in Guanzhong still needs to be kept secret for the time being.

After this matter was finished, the emperor told Lin Shu about other things: "The Kaiping side is temporarily stable. Just like what you said just now, I do have the intention of going north."

"I dare you, this is not the best time for the Northern Expedition!"

Lin Shu bowed and bowed down, admonishing: "The chaos in the west of Pinghe, the enemy of Kaiping, the imperial army conquered from east to west, and the loss was great. King Qin's army seemed to be very large in number, but its strength was far worse than that of the imperial army. Compared with the Oirat army, there is at least five times the difference. Your Majesty, why not take this opportunity to train a new army, and select elite soldiers and strong generals from King Qin's army to train a strong army directly under your majesty."

This proposal is too appetizing!
The emperor's eyes lit up. The hundreds of thousands of King Qin's army seemed mighty, but in fact, less than half of them could actually be pulled to the grassland to fight Oala.

The infantry was at a disadvantage against the cavalry, not to mention that in King Qin's army, most of them were civilians recruited temporarily by the local government.Probably nearly half of the people are picking up a sword for the first time, and they will faint from fright when they see blood on the battlefield.

Lin Shu continued to talk eloquently: "Your Majesty is a master of military training. Your Majesty, why don't you let the Duke of England choose one hundred thousand recruits from King Qin's army and fill them into the imperial army. After several months of training, they will be transferred to Kaipingwei battalion by battalion to fight against Oirat. The front of the army has been blocked by the imperial army, and as the saying goes, the strength of one effort will then weaken and exhaust, and this is the time when Wala's momentum is gradually weakening, so it is best to train troops with Wala."

In the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam in the previous life, the central government pulled soldiers from each military region one by one for training.A soldier who has never seen the cruelty of war will always be a recruit!

Kaipingwei is now as stable as a rock, and Wala's surprise attack opportunity has run aground, and now being held up by the Great Chu on the mountainside, he cannot advance or retreat, and he happens to be a good opponent for the Great Chu in training troops.

"Your Majesty, there is another reason why I don't agree with the Northern Expedition. Rong Chen is presumptuous, and the capital is not as peaceful as he imagined. Not only is there a problem with the center, but there are also possible rebellions in Shanxi, Shandong, Henan, and Liaodong, which are close to the capital. After all, the saint is old!"

When Lin Shu said the words "sage is old", the emperor's eyes narrowed, his expression became serious and sharp, and the atmosphere in Qinzheng Hall instantly became cold.

But the emperor also understood that what Lin Shu said was right, otherwise, when King Qin's army arrived in the capital, he would have already marched to the front line of Kaiping himself.

"Lin Qing, this remark has come out of the Qinzheng Hall, so don't tell anyone!"

The emperor warned Lin Shu: "King Qin's army came from afar, so naturally we can't just go back like this. Originally, I discussed with the cabinet and took this opportunity to teach Wala a lesson. But as Aiqing said, King Qin's army is mixed, even on the battlefield. After defeating Oirat, the loss of the army must be huge..."

Ugh!
With a long sigh, the emperor still gave up the strategy he had set up a few days ago.The first battle was successful, and if the King Qin's army had more than [-] casualties, so what if they won Wala for a short time?
"I will have a good discussion with the British government about the formation and training of the new army. I will give you a task. You should select 3000 people and train a firearms battalion in the name of the Eastern Palace. The required silver will be allocated by the internal treasury..."

"Ah! Your Majesty..."

Lin Shu almost failed to keep up with the emperor's thinking, and the emperor's thinking jumped too fast!
I just heard the emperor say: "This time the Shenji Battalion shines in Kaiping. Whether it is the newly made artillery or muskets, it has a miraculous effect against the Oirat cavalry. It is a pity that the cost is also high. Neither the Ministry of Finance nor the Ministry of War agrees to increase the number of Shenji Battalion. Scale. The East Palace has been established, and it’s time to reset the Six Rates of the East Palace.”

……

The Six Commander of the East Palace, which was mainly based on firearms, was finally determined. No matter how Ren Linshu refused, the emperor still gave him the rank-[-] military post of the Prince Zuowei, assisting the Prince in controlling three thousand soldiers and horses.

When the imperial decree was delivered to the cabinet from the Palace of Qinzheng, all the academicians in the cabinet were a little worried.

The emperor was in his prime and in good health.A few days ago, the Tai Hospital diagnosed a concubine who was pregnant with a dragon seed. According to common sense, the emperor's dragon horse spirit is not a problem to sit on the dragon chair for 20 years.

The emperor has no problem, but the prince has a problem.

The father is strong and the son is strong, and the suspicion between father and son is the most likely to occur. Now is the time when father and son are close. Let alone setting up the East Palace Six Commanders for the East Palace, let the prince command all the soldiers and horses of the twelve guards in the Beijing camp. The emperor does not think there is any what.

But what if one day, the emperor's body feels unwell, or he is getting old?At that time, the Supreme Emperor and the former Crown Prince had been loving and filial for 20 years. Wasn't it no match for suspicion and rumors?

The chief assistant of the cabinet, Wei Qinghe, immediately went to the palace to see him, and had a secret talk with the emperor in the Palace of Qinzheng for a whole afternoon, and finally stamped the cabinet's seal on the drafted imperial edict before he was appointed.

After Lin Shu returned to the mansion, he shut himself in the study after hastily eating dinner, and drafted the regulations for the establishment of the Six Commanders of the Eastern Palace overnight.

Since it is a new army mainly based on firearms, it is naturally different from the previous ones in terms of selection, training and combat methods.The infantry manual must be produced, and tactics such as three-stage strike must be trained in advance.

Today's muskets still can't meet Lin Shu's requirements. The Ministry of Industry and the firearms workshop need new blueprints for testing. It would be great if they can produce flintlock guns.

The bright light in the study lasted until the early morning of the next day. With big dark circles under his eyes, Lin Shu yawned and came to the front hall to have breakfast.

Daiyu said worriedly: "Brother didn't sleep last night? Why don't you take leave today and have a good rest for a day. The imperial doctor just checked the pulse a few days ago and said, don't let my brother work too hard..."

(End of this chapter)