Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

"The fifth problem is that the transport officials are corrupt and take bribes, and they squeeze people out of their bones.

In order to benefit themselves, the officials of the transport bureau at all levels often placed their private individuals in various institutions. In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, the transport governor's office only had a few members of the transport commission, but now, due to the efforts of relatives and friends, the number has increased to more than 80.

Once these people were appointed, they set up government offices, hired servants, acted violently and tyrannically, demanded fees, solicited goods, and did everything they could.

There were hundreds of officials in charge of the transport of grain along the route, from Guazhou to Tongzhou. They knew that it was useless to the public, but they had to borrow the fat of the army to reward their subordinates for their efforts. The grain transport office became a place for promoting private individuals.

When Chen Zhongjian said this, he glanced at the Grand Canal Governor Tang Ying intentionally or unintentionally and saw that his face was livid.

I laughed secretly in my heart, Old Tang, good opportunities are hard to come by, so I have to borrow your official position. It's your grain transport office that is in such a mess.
Tang Ying wished he could twist Chen Zhongjian's head off. It would have been fine if they just had different opinions, but this man actually wanted to sell out his friends for fame and fortune and step on him to climb up.

Therefore, he could no longer bear it and said in a loud voice: "Your Highness, Governor Chen is slandering me. The grain transport involves eight provinces and many prefectures. The grain transport committee is only set up to supervise the grain transport, and each person supervises a prefecture and cannot cover all the prefectures. How can it be said that a relative or friend recommended a private person?

Chen Zhongjian glanced at him, sneered slightly, did not refute, but just looked at Jia Cong.

Jia Cong said calmly, "Sir Tang, I have already said that you are not allowed to interrupt. What do you mean?"

Tang Ying had never dealt with Jia Cong, so he didn't know his temper. He relied on the power of the Canal Transport Office and shouted, "Your Highness, Governor Chen slandered and framed the Canal Transport Office in person. As the Canal Transport Commander, this is intolerable."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "After all, he is the governor of the transport bureau, and he is in charge of 120,000 transport workers, so he has a different confidence.

It is said that the General's Mansion controls the army of the whole country, but it has no control over the grain soldiers. No wonder they dare to ignore my words." His expression turned cold and he shouted, "Come here, drag Tang Ying down and give him thirty strokes of the cane."

"Yes!" Immediately four big generals stepped forward and captured Tang Ying.

"Your Highness!" Tang Ying was shocked and angry. He didn't expect that Jia Cong would dare to hit him, a high-ranking official with a large number of troops under his command.

"The grain theft case from the other day hasn't been resolved yet. What kind of moral character do you have in the grain transport office? Don't you think I don't know?

It's fine that you oppress the people and the transport workers, but you even don't let go of the country's grain. Haha, you participated in forging secret talismans, concealed the truth, and secretly collected grain. Do you really think I can let you go easily? You, the commander of the grain transport, are to blame, right? "Jia Cong sneered.

Tang Ying was finally frightened by Jia Cong's past "achievements" and kowtowed hurriedly, saying: "I have failed to discipline my subordinates and have not handled matters carefully. I beg Your Majesty to show mercy."

Jia Cong waved his hands and said, "After the beating in the court, he will be thrown into the imperial prison to await punishment."

"Your Highness, please spare my life..." Tang Ying was panicked and wanted to beg for mercy, but the big Han general gagged him and dragged him away.

When the ministers saw that the governor of the grain transport system was dismissed just like that, they were all shocked, knowing that Jia Cong's determination to reform the grain transport system seemed irreversible.

Those who supported river transportation decisively abandoned their previous proposals and secretly began to support sea transportation again. If you want to get into the court without knowing which way the wind is blowing, isn't that like lighting a lantern in the toilet?
"Go on." Jia Cong glanced at Chen Zhongjian.

Chen Zhongjian bowed and said, "Yes. What I said before was to employ private individuals.

In fact, it was a well-known fact that grain transport officials accepted "corrupt rules". In order to avoid impeachment, the county officials directly responsible for collecting the grain had to bribe the grain transport supervisors and collectors sent by their superiors, and even their clerks and family members. The amount of silver they gave ranged from several hundred taels to one or two thousand taels.

The grain director was in charge of the grain policy of a province and was also responsible for escorting the grain. He was responsible for distributing the travel rations and monthly rations of the transporters. He often deducted the rations and did not pay them in full. He also bought various gifts, such as silk, satin and tea, to give to the grain transport officials along the way. In official circles, they were called "cargo guests".

From south to north, there were grain transport officials along the canal, all of whom demanded bribes in the name of urging transport.

The grain transport boats were forced to dig shallow waters to pass through the locks under the supervision of officials sent by the Governor's Office. The number of barges and the depth of their draft were all decided by them.

In order to ferry the people across the river smoothly, the porters had to spend money in advance to clear the way. If things went wrong, they would go to the dangerous places of the gates, in the dark night of wind and rain, and call the grain ships resting "wandering around", and beat them arbitrarily, forcing them to the deep waters, causing the ships to break and people to drown, and they would have to pay a heavy price for the rice.

From all these things, we can see that transporting grain by river is like a heavy yoke for the imperial court, the transporters and the people, while only officials, gangs and brokers benefit from it. It is a major stubborn problem of the dynasty.

Taking the southern province where I once worked as an example, the grain tax in Suzhou, Songshan, Changzhou, Zhenjiang, Taicang and other places where grain was most concentrated amounted to nearly 1.6 million dan, the highest in the country.

The annual freight for the transport workers was more than 370,000 taels of silver and more than 410,000 dan of rice, worth more than 930,000 taels of silver, totaling more than 1.3 million taels.

The amount spent from the national treasury is so high, and the amount spent on subsidies to help the boatmen is almost twice as much. The total amount spent by the public and private sectors is only a few taels for one shi.

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Do you have any objection to what Governor Chen said about the malpractices in transporting grain?"

The ministers hurriedly said, "We second the motion."

"No objection."

"Governor Chen's remarks hit the nail on the head."

"It's neither inappropriate nor lax, very precise."

“It is impossible to know unless you have experienced it firsthand.”

Jia Cong said: "Since there are such serious drawbacks, whether it is feasible to transport by sea or not, the time has come for the grain transport to be changed."

Seeing that Chen Zhongjian had said all he could, the governor of Zhejiang, fearing that he would not get any soup, jumped out to agree: "Your Majesty is wise, it is precisely because the long-standing corruption in the grain transport system is difficult to correct and is getting worse, and the floating taxes are increasing year by year, and the people are exhausted, so they are forced to go to the capital to control the government, and the finances of the prefectures and counties are exhausted, and they are forced to suffer losses.

The local officials hated the people for filing complaints, and took vengeance against the common people in an extremely brutal manner, even hiring thugs to beat up those who filed complaints against the grain transport tax, leaving the people in the southeast who were in charge of the grain transport tax with no place to file complaints.

This further provoked popular unrest, resulting in frequent cases of looting, tearing down warehouses, and beating officials.

The local officials also understood that those who had previously caused disturbances on the grain transport were all thugs, but in recent years they have all been good citizens, and the reason they took such desperate measures was that they had no choice.

The imperial court also issued edicts many times to crack down on corruption in the grain transport industry and formulated measures to rectify the situation.

For example, the late emperor issued an edict at the beginning of his reign, ordering the governors and governors-general of the grain transport provinces to break favoritism and punish any malpractices, so that everyone would be alert and prevent any loopholes.

However, due to the inherent deficiencies of the grain transport policy, various plans can only achieve temporary results or be in vain. If we cannot make a decisive change, the government will force the people to revolt! "

The officials of the Cao Province who were summoned to Beijing to report on their work were well aware of the pros and cons, and they all spoke up to agree that if they wanted to make changes, they should make them, as long as their own problems would not be investigated. They must not do stupid things like Tang Ying, who tried to stop a chariot with his bare hands or an ant trying to shake a tree. They should put their own safety first.

Seeing that everyone was speaking the same language, Jia Cong nodded with satisfaction and said, "Master Chen, please continue."

Chen Zhongjian hurriedly said, "I would like to present my humble opinion on the benefits of sea transportation. Your Majesty, please correct me."

"Well, tell me."

“I believe that there are three advantages to sea transportation. First, the sea routes are smooth and there is no need for manpower.

A large amount of money can be saved every year on river repair and connection, and the people's farmland will not be damaged. There will be no military checkpoints along the way, and the porters will not suffer from exploitation, so the transportation cost will inevitably be greatly reduced.

Second, sea transportation is fast and convenient. On the ocean, the sky is high and the sea is vast, strong winds blow the sails, and a thousand miles away can be reached in more than a month. The travel is convenient, and the porters do not have to suffer the pain of wandering all year round, which can also save a lot of travel expenses;
Third, the sea merchants are skilled and can be used. Merchant ships transport goods in the spring, autumn and winter. At that time, beans and grains in the northern provinces are abundant and cheap. They are shipped south with favorable winds. Merchants make a lot of money and the ship owners' wages also increase.

In summer, goods in the northern provinces are in short supply and prices are high, so merchants make little profit and ship owners also charge low prices. At this time, hiring a ship to transport grain to the north with a favorable wind is a good opportunity to give up the expensive and go for the cheap, avoid danger, or just transport the entire grain in a hurry.

It is also possible to prepare for both spring and summer. If this can be done flexibly, it will not only be smooth sailing for both the upper and lower classes, but will also benefit the imperial court and the maritime merchants."

Flatterer! When the ministers heard him mention the third benefit, they all curled their lips in disdain. Everyone knew that the largest maritime merchant in the country today was Jia Cong's Wanguo.

Isn't Chen Zhongjian's proposal just a disguised way of giving money to Prince Jing? Abolish the grain transport and let the Wanguo ship transport all the grain. It will be a stable profit of at least several million silver a year.

Damn it, why didn’t I think of this and let him get there first?

Jia Cong couldn't help but smile slightly. Although they had a grudge in the past, this man was knowledgeable, interesting, and capable, so he could be used. After all, they only had different political views and factions back then, and there was no deep hatred.

"My lords, do you have any suggestions?" Jia Cong looked around and said.

The ministers looked at each other and said, "We second this motion."

The example of the governor of the Grand Canal was there, so who dared to make such a bold statement? Even though they knew that there were many problems with abolishing river transport, they had no choice but to pretend to be ignorant.

"I have an objection." A burly official suddenly came out and said in a voice as loud as a bell. It was Zhu Gaoxi, the governor of Shandong. His presence was very out of place in the Golden Palace.

Jia Cong glanced at him and said, "Play it."

"I think sea transportation is not feasible. There are ten reasons for this." Zhu Gaoxi took out a small notebook from his sleeve, flipped through it, and said:

“First, rivers are not only used to transport grain. Even if grain is transported by sea, it cannot be abandoned. If the number of officials responsible for grain transport is not reduced, the cost of sea transport will increase in vain.

Second, the sea route is dangerous, and we must not test the Tianyu Zheng supply in an unpredictable place. If we fail, the soldiers and civilians in the capital will be in danger of running out of food, and the capital will definitely be shaken;

Third, if sea transport is led by porters, they are not familiar with sea routes. If it is led by ship owners, it will be difficult to supervise and control, and it will be difficult to send more officials to patrol the sea, which will inevitably lead to theft and smuggling.

Fourth, the winds at sea were unpredictable, and it was impossible to supervise in time, so it was hard to predict whether the goods could reach the north on time.

Fifth, the freight is high. There are 8,000 grain ships now. If we switch to sea transportation, we will need at least 1,700 to 1,800 ships, which means 17 to 18 million taels of silver. Where will this huge amount of money come from?

Sixth, there is a risk of loss in sea transportation. As the population of our country is growing, we are always worried that the grain we produce will not be enough for the people to eat, and we cannot bear such losses.

Seventh, it was difficult to hire merchant ships. This was because the grain transport could not be stopped for a year, and the court did not have many seagoing ships at the moment. The ship merchants held the lifeline of the country and would certainly raise the price.

Eighth, it is labor intensive. Sea transport requires a navy to escort the ships, which will require 40,000 soldiers, and the food and wages required will also be huge.

Ninth, occupying merchant ships for transporting grain would inevitably affect the supply of commercial goods in the capital, causing the price of goods from the south to rise;
Tenth, if we switch to sea transport, the hundreds of thousands of people who have been transporting grain for years will lose their jobs and may turn into pirates, which is not a way to maintain peace. Please think twice, Your Majesty."

Jia Cong nodded slightly and said, "What Governor Zhu said makes sense, but the court cannot throw the baby out with the bathwater. Moreover, Zhongtang Gu has already set a successful example. How can we just ignore it?"

Zhu Gaoxi was quite straightforward like a Shandong native, and was not afraid of Jia Cong's power. He cupped his hands and said loudly, "Your Highness, if sea transportation is good at river transportation, I will naturally support it with all my strength. I also ask for your advice, Gu Zhongtang."

Gu Tao smiled as he left the class and said, "As a temporary solution to transporting grain, the quickest way is to transport it by sea. However, because it is only carried out occasionally, the best method is not fully developed from the beginning, which leads to problems that accumulate over time.

If the ocean is vast and full of stormy waves, there will certainly be some from time to time. Also, it is not surprising that there are rocks, sand, branches and pools in it, which are considered as tests.

However, if we abandon the usual theories of change, then we will end up with blocked rivers and harbors, boats that carry us and capsize, often due to unexpected events. If we can carefully examine the twists and turns, and distinguish the dangers and ease, how can we see that there is no path to follow in the vast ocean?

I think that what Governor Zhu is worried about is nothing to worry about.

If you are worried about the deep sea and the loss of grain, you may not be able to deliver all of it at once. You can try to deliver only one-tenth or one-twelve of it first, and then start the full-scale delivery after you have surveyed the sea route and are familiar with the sea conditions. In addition, the loss of grain by river transportation is actually several times higher than that by sea transportation.

If you are worried about pirates appearing, they can steal our grain. The navy of our dynasty is just beginning to be established, and there is a place for it to be put to good use. The cost of living and traveling with the navy is the same, so why not use it to sail across the oceans and protect our sea borders?
If you worry that you need to build new ships for food and recruit new rudders, it will take time and the cost will be huge. You don't need to rush to achieve success and demand to complete it in one go. You can just do it slowly.

Moreover, there are already thousands of sand ships in Jinling and other places, and there is experience in traveling to Liaodong, so there is no need to build more, and it saves costs.

The imperial court could allocate two million silver coins every year to build seagoing ships, so that public and private ships could work together to transport grain.

In this way, private ships would not dare to raise prices arbitrarily when they saw that the imperial court had its own transportation capacity. If the official ships were not able to transport goods, they would be entrusted to private ships until the public and private ships each accounted for 50% of the transportation, and the competition between the two sides would be restrained.

If you are worried about the boat operators stealing and selling the goods privately, there are many towns and villages along the river, making it even cheaper to steal and sell the goods.

Monitoring stations can be set up at the ports along the sea transportation route to prevent them from having anywhere to sell their grain. Soldiers can also be added to the ships to guard them so that they dare not act rashly. Severe punishments can also be imposed to prevent them from stealing and selling the grain, which will do more harm than good.

Moreover, the porters stole and sold the grain because the river transport officials demanded a lot of money from them. The income of the porters was very meager, so they had no choice but to resort to this last resort. It was really forcing good people to become thieves. If the sea transport was used, the freight and food were sufficient, who would be willing to take the risk?
If you worry about occupying merchant ships and making prices in the capital expensive, there is no need to worry. If the court promulgates the law, all sea merchants will surely rush forward. Although the court is slow in building ships, sea merchants can make a profit. If they work day and night, they can make up for the transportation capacity in one or two years. The benefits far outweigh the harm.

If we worry that the people involved in the grain transport will be displaced and become bandits, that is not a big deal. After all, the grain transport is still there, it just doesn't go by river.

Moreover, the imperial court did not intend to abolish river transportation immediately. The livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people would be cut off overnight. This could be done over ten years, with only a 10% increase each year, and it could be done slowly.

In this way, the sea transport capacity will not be greatly affected, and by recruiting clean people on the river to operate the sea vessels, the people involved in the canal transport can also be diverted. With this two-pronged approach, there should be no major problems. "

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Gu Zhongtang is right. The biggest risk is that the boatmen and other boatmen will gather together to cause chaos. I have a large number of troops to deal with them.

The key to reforming the water transport system is to rectify the water transport affairs. From now on, the court will send good generals and elite troops to sweep along the river, capture and kill bandits, and intimidate the mob on the canal. With both kindness and force, I think no one dares to cause trouble at the risk of their lives.

After all, the reason why we changed the canal transport system is to make life easier for the people. As long as it benefits the people, they will support the court."

Gu Tao said: "Your Majesty is wise."

"Besides, the so-called 120,000 transport soldiers, haha, do you think I am one of you scholars?"

Jia Cong sneered, "In terms of learning, I am not as good as you gentlemen, but in terms of military affairs, you are not as good as me. If half of these 120,000 soldiers are in the camp, Tang Ying will be considered to have a conscience. They are all tired and lazy soldiers. They may extort the people and the prefectures and counties, but if we really have to use swords and guns, they are nothing!"

The nobles listened for a long time without getting a word in. They were feeling bored, but when they heard Jia Cong talking about military affairs, they all laughed and agreed: "Your Majesty is wise, how can a few veteran soldiers turn the world upside down?
If you are worried that they may cause a rebellion, I am willing to lead a group of troops to the south and subdue them personally.

How can they have any say in the government's policies? If they dare to say no, they will be punished with death."

All the ministers shook their heads and smiled bitterly. They had nothing to say to this group of roughnecks who only knew how to fight and kill.

Jia Cong hesitated for a moment and shouted, "Where is Xie Jing?"

"The general is here!"

"I order you to lead 5,000 new troops southward to wipe out the bandits along the river, and all the captives shall be sent to the nine frontiers as exiles.

He temporarily used the imperial power to reorganize the grain transport workers, clear up vacancies, improve military discipline, lay off the old, weak and lazy, set up grain transport guards, and bring the grain transport workers under the jurisdiction of the General's Office.

And we will rectify the local garrisons along the canal, streamline the military and government, eliminate redundant soldiers and generals, vigorously promote new and upright people, and execute them first and report later for those below the commander level. The Jinyiwei will assist throughout the process." Jia Cong said.

"I have obeyed your order!" Xie Jing bowed.

The river governor Su Ren took the initiative to report: "Your Majesty, I also have tens of thousands of river troops under my command, which are mainly used for river repairs on weekdays.

I am not familiar with military affairs, I have neglected discipline and training, and I have neglected military affairs. I feel deeply ashamed of the court, and I request that I be included in the General's Office."

He had a good plan. Since you, Jia Cong, love soldiers, he would give them all to you. This would flatter him and save a lot of military pay every year. He could use the free labor of the general's mansion when the time comes. Why not? Anyway, he didn't plan to rebel, so what was the point of having soldiers?
Jia Cong glared at him, knowing his plan. His general's mansion was not a scrap collector, so he waved his hand and said, "Since they are here to repair the river, I don't expect them to fight. From now on, we will change the name to Hegongying and specialize in water conservancy.

Among them, the elite troops were organized into an army to take charge of the river security. The General's Office sent soldiers to supervise them and enforce all orders. The river security office still managed them."

"Yes." Su Ren bowed hurriedly.

"What other opinions do you have on sea transportation?" Jia Cong brought the discussion back to the main topic.

Shandong Governor Zhu Gaoxi was refuted point by point by Gu Tao, and he felt that it was reasonable, so he returned to the class and stopped talking.

Seeing that Gu Tao and Jia Cong had both personally taken action, everyone naturally would not be ignorant of the current situation and they all agreed.

Jia Cong nodded and said, "In this case, please let Gu Zhongtang take full responsibility for this matter, and with the full cooperation of the provinces, we must proceed prudently, seek benefits and eliminate harm, and truly reduce the burden on the people. However, those who dare to disobey in public and covet old benefits will be severely punished!"

"Yes. Please rest assured, Your Majesty." Gu Tao bowed.

Chen Zhongjian, Zhu Gaoxi and other local officials hurriedly said in unison: "Your Highness, we will obey your order."

Chen Ji watched coldly without saying a word. The Chen family of Yingchuan had been badly damaged by the grain theft case and their reputation had long been ruined. If they opposed the grain reform at this time, they would be despised. Besides, Jia Cong would not listen to his advice, so he simply kept silent.

"As for the corrupt officials in the grain transport office who make a living from the grain transport, the three judicial departments and the Ministry of Personnel will jointly investigate and punish them, and strictly regulate them, eliminating the dross and retaining the essence." Jia Cong said.

"Yes."
-
Under Jia Cong's strong promotion, various major policies such as the Western Expedition, the new laws, the promotion of commerce, the establishment of factories, the reform of aboriginal people, the reform of the water transport system, and the construction of a navy were smoothly implemented. Because the national treasury was abundant, there were no major disturbances.

March has passed quickly and it is already early summer.

On this day, Jia Cong took his wives, concubines and sisters to a manor outside the city to stay and relax. Now the manor was better managed, with a clear blue lake, lush trees, and peach trees in full bloom.

It was a rare opportunity for the girls to go out for a walk, so they were all very excited and went out in groups of three or five to play.

Jia Cong followed the mountain path alone to a small but exquisite tomb in the back mountain. He saw that the area around the tomb was clean and tidy, with fresh fruits offered in front of the tombstone. There were lush pines and cypresses all around, and squirrels would occasionally slip down from the trees and carry away offerings.

Jia Cong sighed softly. This is where Jinse rests forever.

He was used to seeing life and death and had never felt guilty about someone's death, except for this girl whom he had only met once.

If I had agreed to accept her at Prince Beijing's Mansion that day, how could she have suffered such a tragedy at such a young age.

Every time he thought of this, Jia Cong regretted his decision. Only by torturing Shui Rong madly could he calm himself down a little and relieve his guilt towards Jinse.

He leaned over to light three incense sticks and placed a peach blossom he had picked himself. Jia Cong stood in front of the tomb for a long time, sighed deeply and was about to leave when he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.

"Miss Jinse must want you to live happily. She would also smile if she knew about this in the afterlife."

Jia Cong looked back at the person who came and said with a wry smile: "Pin'er, it's hard for me to be happy now."

Daiyu went over and gently took his hand, looked up at him, and said softly, "That's because Brother Cong takes the world as his responsibility, so he naturally has more worries."

Jia Cong sighed, nodded and said, "I thought Sister Bao knew me best, but it turns out that Pin'er and I are also in love with each other."

Daiyu rolled her eyes at him and said with a hint of sourness, "People know that you love Sister Bao the most, but don't say it in front of others."

Jia Cong laughed and hugged her and said, "Pin'er, you know, Sister Bao also said the same thing to me."

Daiyu was both embarrassed and happy, and said angrily, "Why don't you let go? It would be disgraceful if Miss Jinse saw it."

Jia Cong chuckled and let her go. Daiyu also leaned over to burn incense, bowed twice, and prayed silently.

"Let's go." Jia Cong helped her up and went back hand in hand with her.

"Brother Cong, is it because of Miss Jinse that you did not reject Miss Yu?" Daiyu said.

Jia Cong looked at her in surprise, nodded and said, "My dear Pin'er, you are really a worm in my stomach."

Daiyu spat, "Disgusting, you are the roundworm."

Jia Cong smiled, then sighed and said, "Pin'er, don't you find that Qian Ning and Jin Se have many similarities?
Just as beautiful, elegant, well-read, and stubborn. I can't let another girl fall into tragedy for me."

Daiyu covered her mouth and laughed, "There are so many pretty girls. Are they all similar to Miss Jinse?"

Jia Cong shook his head and said, "I have calmed down now and will not accept anyone into the mansion anymore. Well... Baoqin and Si Niang have already been chosen."

Daiyu glanced at him, her eyes as bright as an icy lake only showing disbelief.

Jia Cong hurriedly said, "You don't believe it? I will swear an oath right now, and the sun and the sky will bear witness to it."

Daiyu pulled his hand down and spat, "Why are you swearing for no reason? God doesn't care about your affairs."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Forget it. Words are not enough. Let's see what happens."

Daiyu smiled but said nothing. Suddenly her face turned red and she said softly, "It's already Double Ten this year."

"Well, didn't I wish you a baby the other day? I also gave you a pot of Xiangfei bamboo carved from emerald jade, which cost me a lot of money." Jia Cong said with a smile.

Daiyu stamped her feet and said angrily, "I'll punish you, you heartless man. If you keep playing dumb, I'll let you go."

Jia Cong laughed, scratched her nose, and said, "Look at you, you don't know how to be funny. I know that Pin'er wants to be a mother, how difficult is that? I promise to make a little man for you within two months."

Daiyu lay in his arms and said in a mosquito-like voice, "Today is... the... dangerous period you mentioned." This was the first time she took the initiative to seek sex.

Jia Cong hurriedly said, "Got it. The weather, the location, and the people are all right tonight. It's destined to be a child."

Daiyu sneered and suddenly heard someone walking quickly towards her. She quickly pushed Jia Cong away and stood aside with her head down.

Cheng Lingsu ignored the intimacy between the two and said, "Sir, Mr. Pang has come from the city and said he has something important to discuss. He is waiting in the study."

Jia Cong said, "Okay, I'll go right away. You take the madam back."

"Yes."

In the study, Jia Cong greeted Pang Chao and asked, "Sir, what's the urgent matter?"

Pang Chao laughed and said, “It’s really a coincidence of things.

Let’s talk about the farthest one first. The Tenth Prince sent a victory report saying that after two months of training in Yili, he personally led 3,000 new troops and marched nearly a thousand miles to successively conquer Issyk-Kul, Kaskelein, Kapchagay and other places in Kokand, and captured an important town called Gurban Alimat, which is also called Apple City because of its abundant apple production.

Due to the shortage of water and grass in the Western Regions, the Tenth Prince's next plan is to send troops to the sea to occupy this large lake first, build a city to defend it, and then he will not be afraid.

Then we will go south and take Bishkek, Talas, Baishuicheng, Zhushicheng, Samarkand and other important places, and go straight to the coast of the West Sea to open up the sea transportation route. This is the geographical map of that place. "

Jia Cong took the map, looked at it, compared it with the vague world map in his mind, and praised: "Good.

Taking over Apple City and Yi Bohai would be like occupying the Russians' backyard. Once the world situation changes, they can stab the Russians from behind at any time.

If we don't take action first, the Rakshasa will definitely take this place. As for going south..."

"Why not go south?" Pang Chao asked hurriedly.

"Even if we take Samarkand, it is still quite far from the coast of the West Sea, and will conflict with Persia, which is a powerful country in the area, not like the small countries in the Western Regions." Jia Cong sighed, "Isn't the goal I set for Chi Ge'er too difficult?"

Pang Chao was quite optimistic. He said, "According to the news sent by the Tenth Prince and the Jinyiwei, the countries in the Western Regions are loose and there is no strong dynasty. Persia is now in decline. The Qajar Dynasty is no longer as prosperous as Persia."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "That's good. Tell him that when our army goes abroad to fight, we don't seek speed but stability. We will take every place we can and be careful not to repeat the mistake."

Pang Chao said: "The Tenth Prince is well-versed in military books, and has also learned from the war to conquer Korea. Now he is in the Western Regions killing the powerful, practicing benevolent policies, distributing pastures, and benefiting the people. He is extremely popular. He has gathered tens of thousands of warriors from various tribes around him, all of whom are willing to fight to the death for the Heavenly Dynasty.

Bandits were either recruited or eliminated, and the trade routes in the Western Regions were more stable than ever before. Protector General Liu also continuously sent out border troops to garrison various cities.

"Good!" Jia Cong praised: "No matter where you are, there are always many poor people. He can be so sensible and benefit the poor, and the local people will naturally support him.

Tell him that since the Qajar dynasty is in decline, we should take it if we can. If we don’t, someone else will take it in the future. That’s a story for later.

The most urgent task is to open up the sea outlet, and then expand to both sides of this road in the future."

"That's a very good point." Pang Chao nodded.

"In addition, there is a Western sect there that is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and is quite troublesome. He does not need to conquer them by force. If he can make peace with them, it will be of great help to him in conquering cities and territories. It will not be too late to eliminate them when he has a solid foundation and strong national strength in the future.

In addition, the White Lotus Sect was also brought over to control the religion with their own teachings, and the most splendid and magnificent temples of that religion were built in various important cities.

Don't be afraid to spend money. The more magnificent the temple is, the better. It will make people feel that this is the place where the true gods reside. As long as you are willing to spend money, I don't think anyone can compete with me for faith." Jia Cong said.

Pang Chao clapped his hands and laughed, "This is a great plan! People in this world are foolish and easily fooled by appearances and beauty.

As long as the imperial court can control the most magnificent and exquisite temple there, erect two clay sculptures and wooden sculptures, and add a few "great and virtuous monks" who can save all living beings, why should we be afraid that no one will come to worship? By then, we can also control the oracles and teachings of that religion. "

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It's not surprising. In the Journey to the West, isn't there a monster that transforms into a Buddha, sits on a lotus pedestal, and receives incense from people?
As the saying goes, Buddha relies on gold, and as long as you put on that layer of skin, anyone can become a Buddha. Since the people like this, give it to them, it is better than forcibly killing them. "

"Your Majesty is kindhearted." Pang Chao smiled and twirled his beard. "The Tenth Prince said that the firearms are very useful. When will they be restocked?"

Jia Cong said, "We just sent 20,000 muskets and more than 300 cannons the other day. I think they are still on the way. When the production capacity of the arsenal is increased, we will send him a large amount and allocate another 1 million silver coins to him. What else?"

"Miss Fatini also sent a letter." Pang Chao took out a mailbox from his sleeve and handed it to Jia Cong.

Jia Cong quickly opened it and read it carefully, then said with a smile, "Fatini said the child is still young and can't stand the long journey, so she brought him back to me in two years when he's older. Well, she said he's quite strong and handsome, so I'll let him do what I want."

Pang Chao smiled and said, "A good father will have a good son, that's natural.

The second thing was that regarding the new law, General Liu killed several gentry who resisted the law in Jiangnan to establish his authority, and the new law was successfully implemented.

The prince is now promoting commerce, and the landlords and tyrants can also make money. It is okay to collect more land taxes." (End of this chapter)