MTL - Poor Family-v2 Chapter 927 another purpose

  Chapter 927 has another purpose

  At this time, a soldier reported at the door, "Vice Tong Wang and Shijun Zhao are here."

   "Bring them in!"

   Not long after, Wang Gui and Zhao Kai came in one after another. Currently, Zhao Kai is serving as the transfer envoy on the Shaanxi Road, responsible for organizing money, food and materials for the Jingzhao Army.

   After the two met, Li Yanqing smiled and asked them to sit down, and served tea to the guards.

   "Vice President Wang, tell me about the current recruitment situation of the militia?"

Since the 50,000 troops recruited by Li Yanqing's Taiyuan Mansion were handed over to Zhang Shuye, after returning to Jingzhao Mansion, he started to recruit 50,000 new soldiers on Shaanxi Road, and planned to build a 100,000 militia regiment. Liu Qi was responsible for recruiting new soldiers for two months. It has been basically completed before, but the progress of the militia is relatively slow, and even a part of it has not been completed until now.

Wang Gui sighed, "It's still the same problem. Regular army soldiers can be exempted from taxes and have a monthly salary of six dollars. The soldiers of the militia are very unbalanced. Just being tax-free is not enough. They require at least two dollars a month, otherwise it will be difficult to recruit. Militia soldiers."

  The militia soldiers are also reserve soldiers. Once the Jingzhao Army is short of troops, they will be transferred to join the army without training. They usually use their spare time to conduct a lot of training, and they are basically quasi-regular troops.

  If the monthly money is two guan, then the 100,000 militia group is 200,000 guan, which is a huge amount, Li Yanqing looked at Zhao Kai again.

Zhao Kai showed a look of embarrassment. The imperial court had given all the 10 million taxes of the Bashu Third Road to the Northwest Third Road, and the Shaanxi Road alone had 6 million guan, with an average of 500,000 guan per month. However, the newly recruited 50,000 soldiers , a monthly military salary of 300,000 guan, and the previous Jingzhao Army also had a monthly salary of 300,000 guan, which is a fixed monthly military expenditure of 600,000 guan. It can only rely on the extra income from a few silver mines, but all the fiscal revenue should not only be used to support the army, but also to pay attention to people's livelihood, basic official salary expenses and government affairs expenses, as well as large expenditures on weapons and armaments. Now It's already beyond their means, so how can they afford the military expenses of 200,000 guan per month.

  Zhao Kai could only give a wry smile, and said to Li Yanqing: "This matter can only be discussed with the imperial court, see if the imperial court can support us another 300,000 guan in military expenses every month?"

  Li Yanqing shook his head, "A few days ago, I exchanged pigeon letters with the officials. The officials said that at most they would give us some special powers, but we have to figure out how to get money and food."

   "Either you can only squeeze the three roads of Bashu, but now the people of Bashu are also heavily taxed, and they are overwhelmed. If the military expenditure is increased, I am afraid they will rebel."

  Li Yanqing didn't answer the call, he pondered for a moment and said: "It seems that the taxes from Chengdu Fu Road in the first half of this year have not been paid to us, I remember right! Only Zizhou Road and Kuizhou Road sent it."

  Zhao Kai nodded and said: "It is reasonable to send it in August. I have been pressing for two months. They had to promise to send it immediately, but they haven't delivered it yet."

   "It seems that I have to go there myself."

  Li Yanqing immediately said to Zhao Kai: "Let's go to Bashu later, let Mr. Zhao go together!"

   "It's okay to be humble, let's go back and arrange things first, and then follow the capital to go south the day after tomorrow."

Zhao Kai's official office still had a lot of things to settle, so he saluted and said goodbye first. At this time, Li Yanqing said coldly to Wang Gui: "Call ten thousand cavalry to wait in Lantian County, and immediately Follow my orders!"

  Two days later, Li Yanqing embarked on a tour of Bashu. This was his first visit to Bashu, and of course it was also the first time he went south since he became the Sichuan-Shanxi Economic and Strategic Envoy.

The imperial court’s appointment of Li Yanqing as the envoy of the Sichuan-Shaanxi Economic Strategy was more out of financial support for Shaanxi Road. The use of money and food from Bashu to support Shaanxi Road’s central position in the northwest did not mean that Bashu was included in Li Yanqing’s sphere of influence. He was only the highest political official of Bashu in name, and the officials of Bashu did not report any government affairs to him from the beginning to the end.

On the one hand, it is certainly because of the inconvenience of the roads, but more importantly, the imperial court has never let go of Bashu. Li Yanqing is well aware of this. Taboo.

  Because of the closed natural environment, Bashu is prone to become independent when the world is in chaos, so there is a saying that Shu was in chaos before the world was in chaos, and the world was governed but Shu was not governed.

Since ancient times, the central court has divided and ruled Bashu administratively. In the Han Dynasty, it was divided into Xichuan and Dongchuan. In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, it was divided into Shannan West Road and Jiannan Road. In the Song Dynasty, it was also divided into Chengdufu Road, Zizhou Road and The three major administrative districts on Kuizhou Road, even in later generations, will separate Ba and Shu and establish their own administrative districts.

  Li Yanqing traveled southward through the Ziwu Valley, and arrived in Hanzhong Nanzheng County three days later. The Hanzhong area belongs to Lizhou Road, so he entered Bashu.

  Li Yanqing only led 500 female soldiers to the south this time, but this was only the public part. Before that, Yan Qing had already led 500 of the most elite scout troops into Bashu.

  Another official who went south with him, apart from Bo Caoye, was Zhao Kai, the transfer envoy of Shaanxi Road.

  One of the purposes of Li Yanqing’s trip south this time was to urge money and food, and asked Chengdu Fulu to transfer the tax for the first half of the year to Shaanxi Road as soon as possible.

In addition, the imperial court has decided to carry out the reform of salt and tea in the three roads of Bashu to increase tax revenue, but it has been delayed. The authority is far inferior to the Northern Song court in Tokyo, so the local government can completely ignore certain decisions of the court, and the court has nothing to do.

  However, the consequences of the inability to carry out the reform of salt and tea directly affected the vital interests of Northwest Third Road, so Li Yanqing could no longer stand idly by. This time he went south not only to urge money and food, but also to use strong means to promote the reform of salt and tea.

Zhao Kai was not optimistic about Li Yanqing's trip to Bashu. At the beginning, he was appointed as the transit envoy of Chengdu Fulu. He was ostracized by Bashu officials in order to carry out the reform of salt and tea. In the end, he was relegated to Hanzhong as a small county captain. What about Li Yanqing, an outsider? Can the intricate interests of Bashu official circles be moved? Moreover, the imperial court did not support Li Yanqing's too much control over the Bashu officialdom.

   "Can Mr. Zhao tell me about the Bashu salt tea reform?" Li Yanqing and Zhao Kai rode side by side and asked with a slight smile.

  Zhao laughed and said: "We can know from a brief introduction in Bashu that there is a saying in Bashu called poor temples, poor monks and rich abbots. How do you understand this sentence?"

   "Does it mean that the people are poor and the government is poor, but the officials are rich?"

Zhao Kai nodded, "That's almost what it means. In fact, not only officials are rich, but local gentry are also rich. Bashu is rich in salt, tea, pig iron, sugar and wine. These kinds of products are huge tax sources. The government monopoly, that is, the Department of Salt and Iron and the Department of Tea and Wine are in charge, and they are directly subordinate to the Department of Accounting of the imperial court. Cao Si can justifiably intervene in the Yantie Division and the Tea and Wine Division. As time goes by, the Yantie Division and the Tea and Wine Division on the Bashu side have existed in name only. "

   "Can you give me an example?"

"Take wine as an example. The government controls the koji, and then sells the koji to the main store to make wine, and the main store sells the wine to various taverns, but who will designate the main store? Of course, the three aunts and six wives of the officials open the main store, and then the government lowers the price. Sell ​​koji cakes to the main store, and then sell them at a high price to various taverns after the main store brews wine. Most of the profit from wine making is taken away by the main store. In fact, it is obtained by various officials. The same is true for salt. Huge profits, the government and many small salt merchants are not profitable."

   "Then how do you plan to reform at that time?" Li Yanqing asked again.

Zhao Kai smiled wryly and said: "The so-called reform is actually redistribution of benefits. At that time, I was planning to release Jiuquyin and Yanyin on Chengdu Fulu, cancel the control of main stores and big salt merchants, and all taverns can directly buy liquor from the government. To make wine by myself, all small salt merchants can also buy salt from the government and go directly to the salt farm to pick up the goods. Zhengdian and big salt merchants cannot benefit from it. As a result, within three days after this proposal was proposed, someone reported that my subordinates were The censor came to investigate for a month and arrested many people, but he still couldn't find any evidence of my selfishness, but he still impeached me and took the responsibility and demoted me to Hanzhong. The reform of salt and tea will come to nothing.”

  Li Yanqing said with a smile: "Actually, your idea is the same as mine. This time I went to Bashu to rebuild the Yantie Tea and Liquor Commissioner and regain the monopoly rights from the local government. Do you think it is feasible?"

"The direction is right, but I'm afraid that the imperial court is not effective! I heard that the imperial court also discovered the disadvantages and asked Bashu Sanlu to implement the reform of salt and tea, but the local government didn't pay attention at all, and the imperial court had no choice. Not enough, weak control of local government.”

  Li Yanqing shook his head, "I'm not going to hand over the tea and wine department to the imperial court, but let the Jingzhao Army take military control and use the force of the army to enforce it."

Zhao Kai was taken aback, implementing military control, how did the court explain it, but after thinking about it, he understood that Li Jinglue was not a reckless person, he must have obtained the official's permission, otherwise he would not have delayed until now Just went to Bashu.

  Zhao Kai pondered for a moment and said: "Military control is just a means of protection, and the specific implementation must be carried out by civil officials, so as not to be caught by the court, which is not good for the reputation of Jinglue."

Li Yanqing smiled slightly, "I have negotiated with the officials to set up a capital transfer department on Bashu 3rd Road, with a salt and tea promotion department and a Cangcao promotion department under it. Transfer the capital to the imperial court, and this time the officials will also send a censor to Chengdu to assist me."

   "It turns out that the economic strategy has been well communicated with the officials, and the lowly position is still worrying in vain."

Li Yanqing smiled and said: "As you said, the army is only an escort, and the specifics have to be implemented by civilian officials. I will also be the transfer envoy. Zhao Shijun will be the deputy capital transfer envoy, responsible for specific affairs, so that you can accept this. Is it a hot job?"

  Zhao Kai laughed, "As long as Jinglue cuts off all the thorns on the stick, I am willing to dance this big stick for Jinglue."

  Li Yanqing showed a faint smile on his face. The thorns on the stick cannot be easily cut off. This trip to Bashu may mean a **** storm.

  (end of this chapter)