People in the Song Dynasty were lawless

Chapter 432: Territory Expands, Traveling the World Again

In November of the eighth year of the Qingli period of the Song Dynasty, the news of the destruction of Western Xia spread rapidly with the publicity of newspapers.

For a time, the whole country was jubilant, even happier than when the Liao Kingdom was destroyed.

The reason is that although the Liao Kingdom bullied the Song Dynasty, it had not gone to war with the Song Dynasty for more than 40 years after the Treaty of Chanyuan.

On the contrary, it was the Western Xia that frequently invaded the border, although there was no major battle before the Song-Xia War officially began.

However, small-scale looting never stopped, and the two sides had too many clashes around the border areas, causing heavy casualties to the Song army on the border.

In addition, during the Baoyuan period, Western Xia launched a full-scale invasion war.

Therefore, after a long period of peace with the Liao Kingdom, they fought from time to time with the Western Xia, and the Western Xia took the initiative to attack them.

The people of the Song Dynasty only heard and received information about Western Xia, and they hated the Western bandits to the core.

In addition to destroying Western Xia and occupying a large amount of territory, the Song army continued to move northward and captured large tracts of land in the Hetao and Yinshan areas.

When the Song Dynasty recovered the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, it also conquered part of the territory of the Liao Kingdom. Now it has occupied tens of thousands of square meters of the Hetao Plain, continuing to expand its territory.

The news was passed back to the Constitutional Court, and Zhao Jun took out a map and began to compare the current territorial situation of the Song Dynasty.

It was still snowing heavily outside, but it was very warm inside.

There was honeycomb coal burning in the heating table, and the smoke was discharged outside the house through the pipe. Several prime ministers were writing official documents around the heating table.

There was a plush blanket on the table. Zhao Jun covered his feet with the blanket and looked at the map.

"Hanlong, what are you doing?"

Yan Shu saw that Zhao Jun had just read a document and had been looking at a map, so he asked curiously, "What's so good about a map?"

"I'm looking at how big our Song Dynasty's territory is now."

Zhao Jun drew several circles on the map with a thick pencil. Compared with a brush, a pencil is more convenient to use.

This thing does not require much technical content. It was invented by the Germans in the 17th century before the Industrial Revolution. It was also produced after the Song Dynasty entered industrialization.

But it was not made until recently because Zhao Jun had always thought that the raw material of this thing was lead, but he didn't know it was graphite.

I asked the factory to conduct research and development, but lead didn't work at all, so after trying many materials, I finally found the main body.

"Did you figure it out?"

Song Shou asked with a smile.

"Well, about 380 million square kilometers."

Zhao Jun also said with a smile.

"You can calculate this too?"

Everyone was surprised.

The ancients had no idea about these things.

Due to limited transportation and the lack of a concrete map of China, they don't even know how big their country is.

In ancient times, wherever the armies conquered and ruled, those places would become territories.

As for how many miles it is exactly, that is purely an estimate.

For example, during the Tang Dynasty, the King of Gaochang said that his Gaochang Kingdom was 8,000 miles away from Chang'an and the Tang army could not defeat it at all.

But the actual distance was 2000 kilometers, and then he was captured by the Tang army.

Although Zhao Jun brought them a map, they still felt it was difficult to make an abstract thing concrete.

"It's quite simple, just a rough estimate will do. I'm pretty good at geography, and I roughly know the area of ​​each province."

Zhao Jun pointed to the Western Regions and said, "For example, Xinjiang is about 160 million square kilometers, Tibet seems to be 120 million, and if you subtract Qinghai, Yunnan-Guizhou, the three northeastern provinces, and Inner Mongolia, and add Xixia, the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, and part of Liaoning Province, it's about the same."

He had previously calculated on a piece of draft paper that the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun covered approximately 12 square kilometers, while Western Xia had not yet reached its peak at that time, and covered approximately 70 square kilometers.

Then it controlled most of Liaoning Province, one of the three northeastern provinces in later generations, about 10 square kilometers.

Together with the parts of the Liao Kingdom's Xijing Road and Zhongjing Road territories that were captured, as well as the Hehuang Valley, it is almost 70,000 to 80,000 square kilometers.

All in all, the Song Dynasty expanded its territory by about 110 million square kilometers over the years, and the total area should be around 390 million square kilometers.

Don't think these places are few and far between.

In fact, this was the traditional area of ​​the Han Dynasty after excluding the Western Regions.

Because according to later calculations, if the Western Regions are not included, the area of ​​the Central Plains during the Han Dynasty was approximately 411 million to 420 million square kilometers.

The missing 200,000 to 300,000 square kilometers do not belong to the entire Yunnan, but to the part from Guizhou to the northern part of Yunnan.

During the Han Dynasty, this southwestern area was the Ailao Kingdom. It was not incorporated into the Han Dynasty until the Eastern Han Dynasty. The Eastern Han Dynasty lacked the territory south of the desert that it had during the Western Han Dynasty. The increase and decrease basically hovered between 410 and 420 million square kilometers.

Therefore, if the Song Dynasty attacks Dali and takes over the Western Regions now, then the Song Dynasty will basically have restored its peak territory during the Han Dynasty, or even surpassed it.

As for the 960 million square kilometers of our country in later generations, after subtracting 390 million square kilometers, where did the remaining approximately 600 million square kilometers go?
Very simple.

The Western Regions alone covered 160 million square kilometers, and then there was the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which was later called Tibet, covering 120 million square kilometers.

Then Inner Mongolia has about 120 million people, the three northeastern provinces have about 80 people, the Song Dynasty has about 10 people in Liaoning Province, minus another 70 people. Finally, add Qinghai and Yunnan-Guizhou regions together for 120 million people, and it's just about 600 million.

"It's a great honor to have so much more territory."

When they heard Zhao Jun say that so much land had been added in recent years, several prime ministers smiled, but they were not too excited.

Because many territories did not bring much profit in ancient times, but were negative assets.

For example, even though Lingnan had been developed for thousands of years and countless generations had come here, it was still a place where criminals were exiled during the Tang and Song dynasties.

Therefore, the ancient dynasties would take whatever territories they could. If they couldn't take them, it was no big deal. There was even a case of Sima Guang giving away the conquered territories.

Zhao Jun saw that although they were happy, they were not too happy, so he asked, "Do you think these lands are useless?"

"Of course we know that you, Hanlong, are obsessed with land, but you should also understand that with the current productivity of the Song Dynasty, it is not possible to actually control so much land. For the Song Dynasty, it is indeed of little use."

Cai Qi said.

"Yes, Hanlong, you can't compare the national strength of the future with that of the Song Dynasty. Isn't that bullying?"

Jia Changchao spread his hands and said.

Zhao Jun laughed and said, "How is that possible? I know that you can't get rich overnight. We have to develop step by step. But don't underestimate these places. They won't become our negative assets."

"Oh?"

Fan Zhongyan became interested and stopped his work and asked, "Why, does Xixia have a mine?"

"Yes, a lot."

Zhao Jun smiled and said, "Coal mines, iron mines, salt mines, and rare earth mines are all good things. In addition, there are..."

He pointed to Xingqing Prefecture with a pencil and said, "This will be our rear base for conquering the Western Regions in the future, as well as here."

He pointed to Yinshan Mountain, which later became Bayannur and Baotou, and said, "These places should be the rear base for us to attack the grassland and take over the entire grassland."

"Preparing for war again? Didn't we investigate before that the Western Regions are too far away and require long-term preparation?"

Yan Shu said.

"Yeah, isn't this the preparation stage?"

Zhao Jun smiled and said, "Look, this is the western part of the Hetao Plain, the Ningxia Plain. And the eastern part of the Hetao Plain is the Bayannur Plain and the Tumed Plain. These are all good natural places for growing crops." Everyone came over.

The place Zhao Jun pointed to was very close to the heartland of the Liao Kingdom to the north and very close to the Western Regions to the west. If agriculture could be developed here, it could indeed become a rear base for advancing into the Western Regions and the Liao Kingdom.

"Ah."

Fan Zhongyan was the first to see its strategic value. He nodded and said, "I remember that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty once sent people to irrigate farmland here. Since then, this place has prospered. Now I see that our ancestors were indeed far-sighted."

Zhao Jun said: "During the Song Dynasty, it was not conquered, so naturally its role was not known. It was not until the Ming and Qing Dynasties that it was vigorously developed here."

Everyone looked at Zhao Jun with resentful expressions.

Don't reveal the truth.

Besides, can the current Song Dynasty be the same as the Song Dynasty in history?

"But judging from the map, this place is still too far from our important location. Will it be difficult to get supplies?"

Fan Zhongyan raised objections.

The supply mentioned here is not only food, but also local control. From Yan'an Prefecture to Bayannur, it is a full 500 kilometers, which makes control very difficult.

"train!"

Zhao Jun made the final decision: "Other places in the northwest can be left unfinished for the time being, but the trains from Guanzhong to Hetao and from Guanzhong to Yumenguan must be repaired first. Once the trains are opened, the economy and military will be boosted simultaneously, which will bring too many benefits to the development of the Song Dynasty."

Why was the ancient system of controlled rule only implemented over the Western Regions and the Mongolian steppes?

It's just too far.

If the Central Plains dynasty wanted to send troops to these places, the marching distance would be calculated in thousands of kilometers.

For example, when Huo Qubing fought the Huns, he traveled two to three thousand kilometers back and forth.

The number of soldiers who died of exhaustion or illness on the road may have been greater than the number of Han soldiers killed in the resistance by the Huns.

So it’s not that our ancestors didn’t want to own more land, but that they were powerless and had no way to control so much territory.

It's different with the train.

Supplies can be transported directly to the border, and control will be greatly enhanced.

More importantly, Zhao Jun wanted to open up the Silk Road and expand trade with Central Asia by controlling the Western Regions.

In this way, the prosperity of both maritime trade and land trade will inevitably open up the market quickly, thus laying the foundation for the Song Dynasty to enter the industrial age.

Otherwise, once the domestic market becomes saturated, the industry will inevitably have overcapacity. If we do not prepare early, problems such as workers being laid off, people being unemployed, and the domestic economy declining will follow.

Therefore, Zhao Jun is preparing for a rainy day and taking measures for the future.

"It is difficult for us to predict these things. The current development of the country is already very unfamiliar to us."

Yan Shu said with emotion: "With the development of the country now, only you, Hanlong, can come."

"Yes, although I understand a lot of economic principles, it is still difficult to change my mindset and to truly apply these principles."

"It's funny to say that last month, there was a note on Guangnan East Road saying that they hoped to lower the tariffs. At that time, I was thinking that if the tariffs were lowered, the national tax revenue would be reduced a lot. But when I read the note, it said that they only import products from us and export raw materials and minerals. If the tariffs were lowered, it would greatly increase their enthusiasm for exporting raw materials and bring more tax revenue to the country. At that time, I felt that I didn't know how to govern the country anymore."

"Alas, we can't keep up with the times."

Several prime ministers also sighed.

If someone had said ten years ago that they did not know how to govern a country, these people would probably have just smiled and not bothered to argue.

But if someone now says that they don’t know how to govern a country, they will most likely be met with silence.

Because the development of the Song Dynasty has really exceeded their capabilities.

In the past, they only needed to take care of local agricultural development, any disasters, any judicial problems, and more importantly, official struggles.

Now that there is no official struggle, development is taking place everywhere across the country.

But how could they understand where building roads would improve economic development, how could they understand what kind of crops to plant in what place would yield a good harvest, or what the effect of raising or lowering tariffs would be?
These things are beyond the scope.

If Zhao Jun had not been formulating a stable development route over the years, they would probably have been helpless and allowed the country to develop barbarically.

"Times are progressing, and people's thinking has to change, too. Just like in the 1970s and 1980s, when people were conservative, men and women would blush when they held hands. But in the 21st century, it's no big deal."

Zhao Jun smiled and said, "Although it is indeed difficult for you gentlemen to make plans for the future, you have also stabilized the foundation of the country. Agriculture and population are the foundation, and you have made great contributions to these."

"Okay, you don't have to say that. Anyway, we will support you unconditionally no matter what you do in the future. We don't understand it anyway."

Yan Shu smiled.

If it were in the past, when Zhao Jun made the plan, they could also provide suggestions for revisions.

Now, it is completely in the dark.

Because times have really changed.

The systems they used in feudal society are no longer applicable in industrial society.

"That's just right. In fact, I also plan to implement new reforms."

Zhao Jun smiled.

"Oh?"

Fan Zhongyan became interested and asked, "What are you planning to reform?"

"Some are based on the past, and some are major changes. As the country grows bigger, there will be more and more things to manage. Reforms should be carried out every once in a while to solve the problems that arise, so that long-term development can be achieved."

Zhao Jun said.

The New Policies of the Qingli Period went through six rounds, and now, ten years later, the results are evident.

But some things are outdated.

It is just like we once tried hard to learn the system of Big Brother Russia, but finally found that those things were not suitable for us.

Our own domestic changes must also require constant innovation, rather than sticking to the old ways and just thinking about resting on our laurels.

"When does that start?"

Fan Zhongyan asked: "What specific plans have you made?"

"There is no plan."

Zhao Jun shook his head.

"Ah?" Fan Zhongyan was surprised and said, "Then you still say you want to make new reforms."

"Because many problems are hidden under the surface and have not been seen yet, we still have to go down to the grassroots level."

Zhao Jun sighed and said, "This time, I have to travel around the world again."

He traveled around the world for two years and saw a lot of things at the grassroots level, which led to a lot of changes.

People are living a better life now. The evil forces at the grassroots level, the oppression of landlords and officials have become much less.

However, new problems will inevitably bring new challenges.

Who knows what new problems will arise at the grassroots level, and whether people’s lives are really better than before?

Therefore, Zhao Jun must go again, and go more often in the future, go among the people all the time, and integrate with the common people, so that he can know what the future of the Song Dynasty will be like!
(End of this chapter)