I seek economic hegemony in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 312 Let me teach you what war is!

Master Sima was sitting next to Sima Yi, seemingly studying something seriously. Facing Sima Zhao's anger, he did not raise his head.

Sima Yi did not stop writing. He just said lightly: "Don't say any more."

"Father, if this continues, Wei will be doomed!"

"How is it over?"

"The treasury is out of money."

Sima Yi smiled and said: "The treasury is out of money now, but that doesn't mean there will be no money in the future."

Sima Zhao could not understand his father's words. He continued: "If Cao Shuang is not stopped, Li Heng will buy more iron."

"Li Heng buys iron from Cao Shuang?" Master Sima finally raised his eyelids and glanced at Sima Zhao.

Sima Zhao said: "Yes, Li Heng probably had ulterior motives for buying so much iron."

"What's written on it?"

"According to Li Jian's idea, a soldier who is going to the battlefield needs to eat two meals of meat a day." Master Sima said.

"Yes."

"How many?"

"What?" Sima Zhaoda was surprised, "Two meals of meat a day?"

"No, it is said that the price of a chicken is 50 guan!"

"He can also write military books?" Sima Zhao obviously didn't believe it, and his tone was quite disdainful, "Pretending to be a ghost!"

"See for yourself." Master Sima handed it over.

"How many can he buy in a day?"

""The Han Military Code"?"

"Written by Li Heng."

"Is he really stupid or is he pretending to be stupid?" Sima Zhao said, "Or is he deliberately showing it to us and wants us to follow his lead?"

"He gave the soldiers two meals of meat a day?"

"You are wrong, not roughly, but certain." Master Sima said, "This "Han Military Code" was sent from Jingzhou. I have finished reading it."

"Yes."

"Yes."

"Ten thousand?"

"My people have inquired and found out that the Shu army buys a large number of pigs, sheep, chickens and ducks every day, and buys them at high prices. Now in Xiangyang and Jiangling, many farmers are farming and raising poultry."

"50 strings!"

Sima Zhao was startled, then took it and glanced at it.

"Buy it at a high price? Like iron?"

"Ten thousand is 50 guan. He uses 1500 guan a day and million guan a month! He is either a madman or a fool!"

After Sima Zhao finished roaring like Sun Quan, his whole strength seemed to be drained away, and he fell into silence.

Sima Yi put down his pen and became silent. Master Sima was also silent.

After being silent for an unknown amount of time, Sima Zhao said, "Can we find out how much money Li Jian earns in a month?"

Master Sima said calmly: "I'm afraid not, but one thing is certain. Now refined salt has appeared in Sizhou, Yuzhou, Jizhou and other places, and Sun Quan is also casting Shu coins day and night. A large number of textile workshops have also appeared in Jingzhou, and Li Jian is in Another weaving department was established in Jingzhou."

After being silent for a while, Sima Zhao said: "Father! If this continues, we will all be squeezed dry by him!"

"Why are you anxious?" Sima Yi said.

"It's not that I'm anxious, it's just that the situation dictates! Then Li Jian is making a big splash in Jingzhou, and war may start again at any time. Cao Shuang is expanding his armaments in name, but in fact he is enriching his own pockets. I'm worried that one day, I'm afraid..."

"Wang Ling has already happened, how long do you think there will be other voices?" Sima Yi glanced at the impetuous son.

He sighed in his heart that Sima Shi and Sima Zhao had completely different personalities.

The eldest son is obviously more like himself.

"Father's intention is that more people will stand up against Cao Shuang in the future?"

"It's a matter of time." "But we don't have time now. Li Jian is using the time now to prepare for war in Jingzhou!"

"You have to calm down even if you don't have time!" Sima Yi couldn't help but scolded, "If you don't even have such magnanimity, how can you achieve great things in the future!"

Sima Zhao then hesitated and stopped talking.

Master Sima suddenly asked: "Father, Li Heng said in the Military Book that soldiers must eat well, sleep well and have fun to have combat effectiveness. Should we follow suit in the future?"

"This is a matter for the future, let's talk about it later."

"Here."

Time is passing quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it is already May. Under Li Heng's personal urging, three thousand new collars have been added to the walking armor, five thousand new collars to the sleeve armor, and two thousand new collars to the leather armor.

From the purchase of iron to the shaping of Bu Renjia, the total price exceeded the previous 10,000 guan in Chongqing and rose directly to 20,000 guan.

Why is it doubled?
Because Li Heng pursued efficiency.

When you want to improve efficiency, you have to invest more money.

For example, when purchasing iron, merchants in the past would say it would be delivered in two months.

When you double the purchase price of iron, then tell the merchant to deliver the goods within a month, otherwise the order will be given to someone else.

He pledged to kneel on the ground and sign the pledge.

Money is used to improve efficiency!
But doing so will increase Li Heng's cash flow pressure.

In five months, the armor alone consumed 9000 million guan.

Food for soldiers cost 9900 million yuan.

Other consumption has also reached 8000 million yuan.

If official salary expenditures are included, the total expenditure is close to 300 million yuan.

If Zhibai coins are counted as normal copper coins, it would be about 300 million coins.

This has reached a very scary level.

If compared horizontally under ideal conditions, it is always equal to one tael. During the reign of Duke Wei in the late Ming Dynasty, the annual military expenditure of the Liaodong Army was about 580 million taels.

Of course, the Ming court owed a lot of military expenses to the Liaodong Army.

During the reign of Chongzhen, when there was no increase in wages, the annual cash income was only about three million taels, and when it was high, it was five million taels.

As for Li Heng, he spent the converted 300 million taels in half a year.

This is just the soldiers of Jingzhou.

If the Han army in Guanzhong also followed suit, the expenditure would only be higher than that in Jingzhou. Preliminary estimates may reach the figure of 500, which is 5 million Guan Han money.

These do not take into account the budget for the walled city that has not yet been established.

What's even more frightening is that the war has begun. Even if it doesn't start, a confrontation situation has already taken shape.

Then, there is no way to stop.

This means that the monthly military expenditure in the future will only be more than it is now.

Until this time, Jingzhou has become the focus of both Luoyang and Jianye.

Everyone received the intelligence from Jingzhou with trepidation.

At this moment, people in this era deeply and truly realize how expensive war is.

And when it comes to burning money, sometimes you can’t just burn it if you want to.

Time passed very quickly, and it was already August in the blink of an eye, and more refined salt was being imported crazily into Wu and Wei.

Cars could no longer hold copper coins, so merchants had no choice but to add more vehicles for transportation.

It is said that the robbers on the way achieved financial freedom in a short time, but by September, all the robbers from Xiangyang to Nanyang disappeared.

According to folk rumors, the Han and Wei sides each mobilized thousands or even tens of thousands of troops. For the first time, they launched a tacit attack on the robbers on the way.

Facts have proved that there is no robber that cannot be wiped out. As long as it harms one's own interests and is big enough, a mountain can be bulldozed.

Cao Shuang lives and sleeps in Luoyang every day, but he doesn't know that the situation is changing subtly.

(End of this chapter)