My father Zhu Gaoxu

Chapter 893 Hu Hui’s plan

"Hu Shangshu, I wish you a safe journey!"

At Xijing Railway Station, Zhu Zhanhe led the civil and military officials to personally see off Hu Xi and other Ming envoys.

"Thank you, Your Highness, Hu has gained a lot this time. I also hope that the Han Dynasty can send an envoy to our Ming Dynasty in the future!"

At this time, Hu Xi also saluted Zhu Zhanhe solemnly.

"Haha, I have already made preparations for my mission to the Ming Dynasty. In addition, my mother specially asked me to say hello to my aunt on her behalf. She also prepared some gifts herself. I hope you can help deliver them to Hu Shangshu when the time comes. Give it to your aunt!"

Zhu Zhanhe smiled again and said, although Empress Wei and Empress Dowager Zhang were not on good terms in the past, they were sisters-in-law after all, and they had not seen each other for so many years, and the previous grievances had long been forgotten. After all, for people of their age , people of the same generation are gradually passing away, and there are fewer and fewer people alive.

"Don't worry, Your Highness, I will definitely give the Empress's heart to the Empress Dowager personally!"

Hu Xi promised immediately, and then the two exchanged a few words. The other officials of the mission also said goodbye to the officials of the Han Dynasty. Finally, under the watch of Zhu Zhanhe and others, they boarded the train and left Xijing.

The second time they took the train, compared to the novelty last time, Hu Hui and the others were able to calm down and appreciate the convenience brought by the train.

For example, not only were there a large number of people, but there were also many big men giving them gifts in return. The personal gifts given by Queen Wei to Queen Mother Zhang alone included two large carriages, but they only occupied half of the carriage on the train. Such an astonishing Transportation capacity, just pulling goods can bring huge profits.

"Mr. Hu, although building the railway is a good thing, will the ministers in the DPRK and China support it? Especially the Empress Dowager, are you sure you can convince her?"

On the train, Wu Ce asked Hu Hui next to him in a low voice while admiring the scenery outside the window.

After all, building the railway is of great importance. The most important thing is that the cost is staggering. Now the Ming Dynasty spends a lot of money, such as the construction of two imperial mausoleums, and the military in northern Xinjiang. They want to squeeze out of it. It is not easy to find money to build railways.

"Don't worry, I don't know about others, but I am sure about the cabinet. As long as everyone in the cabinet is convinced, the Queen Mother will probably not object. As for the money spent, there is no way to solve it."

Hu Hui smiled slightly and seemed to be confident.

"Mr. Hu, are you kidding me? It's such a huge expense to build a railway. Apart from paying for it from the national treasury, is there any other way to solve it?"

Wu Ce asked with wide eyes and disbelief. Although Da Han did not give specific figures, they had seen the information on Da Han's railway construction. Therefore, Wu Ce knew very well that every inch of railway was paved with money, and It also requires a considerable amount of maintenance costs every year.

So it is true that railways are easy to use, but it is also true that money is like running water. Except for countries like the Ming Dynasty and Han Dynasty that can afford it, other small countries may not be able to afford it even if they are given a railway.

"Do you still remember how His Royal Highness encouraged others to go to sea when he was still the Crown Prince of Han?"

Hu Hui smiled slightly, and then lowered his voice and asked Wu Ce.

"Encourage others to go to sea?"

When Wu Ce heard this, he also thought about it carefully. At that time, he was still serving in the local government and was right next to Tianjin, so he knew the matter very well.

"I remembered that at that time, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince contacted many nobles and asked them to join the stock market and go overseas. After making money, he distributed dividends to everyone. I remember that many nobles made a fortune at that time!" Wu Ce suddenly slapped his thigh in excitement. The way.

"Yes, the prince did not use the power of the court. Instead, he gathered the financial, material and human resources of various noble families, and finally organized a fleet to go to sea. It was not until later that it was profitable that the court joined the official fleet. Team."

Hu Xi smiled and continued. At that time, he was assigned by Zhu Di to search for Zhu Yunwen's whereabouts. It was because of this incident that he had dealt with Zhu Zhanhe. After all, he was in charge of Dongchang and Jinyiwei.

"I understand, Mr. Hu, you plan to use the financial resources of nobles to build this railway!"

Wu Ce finally said with a surprised expression.

"Mere honors are not enough. After all, although the railway can also make money, the income is far less than that of Shanghai Trade, so I plan to use the power of the private sector. After all, after the opening of the sea, many people among the private sector have become rich. As long as they are used properly, , let alone building one railway, building ten railways is not a problem!”

Hu Hui finally said confidently.

"Then Mr. Hu, how do you plan to mobilize the power of the people? Do you need help from your subordinates?"

Wu Ce also asked very earnestly at this time, building the railway is not only a good thing that benefits the country and the people, but also a huge political achievement, so Wu Ce is also very coveted. It will definitely not be his turn to preside over the construction of the railway, but from it It is not difficult to gain some political achievements.

"Don't worry, I will definitely not forget you if you are of use in the future, but I plan to ask the bank to come forward and raise money for the railway in the name of the bank!"

Hu Hui still had great trust in Wu Ce, and she did not hide anything at this time and expressed her thoughts.

"Bank? What a good idea. Banks are originally responsible for managing money, and they are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Accounts. They also have close contacts with the public. If banks come forward to raise funds and are promised dividends from a few years of income, there should be many people willing to pay! "

Although Wu Ce was not an official of the Ministry of Accounts, he immediately understood after hearing Hu Hui's words. In fact, banks have the function of raising funds. When Zhu Zhanhe set up the bank, he not only used it to issue banknotes and absorb private money. , and there is no shortage of money to prepare for some big projects.

After all, Ming Dynasty had too many places to spend money, and no matter how much money there was in the treasury, it was not enough. Thanks to the banks, a lot of money could be raised, which solved many economic problems for Zhu Di at that time.

"Speaking of which, His Royal Highness the Prince founded the bank when he was in the Ming Dynasty. I also followed the methods he left behind. Although the Prince is no longer in the Ming Dynasty, he still benefits us to this day!"

Hu Hui also said with some emotion at this time.

As the Minister of Hubu, he succeeded Xia Yuanji. When Xia Yuanji was still alive, Hubu had a close relationship with Zhu Zhanhe. Therefore, after Hu Bu took over the Hubu, he also deeply felt the benevolence left by Zhu Zhanhe. .

"Who says otherwise? If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can stay in our Ming Dynasty, maybe the Ming Dynasty and the Han Dynasty will be able to merge into one. Then..."

"Be careful!"

Before Wu Ce could finish what he said, he was interrupted by Hu Hui. This surprised Wu Ce, because his words were already a bit arrogant, so he immediately shut his mouth.

However, Hu Xi was actually thinking that if Zhu Di had appointed Zhu Gaoxu as the crown prince, then Zhu Zhanhe would now be the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty. With Zhu Zhanhe's ability, why would the Ming Dynasty need to take the initiative to send envoys to make good friends with other countries?

(End of this chapter)