The Ming Dynasty’s Prodigal Son - Chapter 1793

[1793. Chapter 1705: Kill them all]

Seeing that Fang Jifan was honest and honest, Zhu Houzhao felt that what the emperor did was quite interesting.

He raised his eyebrows and continued: “The second point is that I think it was a good idea to summon the princes and nobles of Korea and Japan to come to Beijing for resettlement. I want to attract the kings and grandsons of the world to come here. If there is anything wrong, If you come, it will be considered a serious crime. If you come… let them live well in Beijing. I have thought about it and the land has been mapped out for them. Come, come, come, Liu Jin… you bitch, get the map. “

Liu Jin smiled happily and immediately took the map.

In fact, Fang Jifan didn’t need to look. He could guess at a casual glance that the place where he was placed was most likely around the land that Zhu Houzhao originally bought.

So he pretended to take a look, and said with surprise: “Your Highness, this place is good, this place is very good, it is only a road away from the new city, it is clean, and it is located around the new city. Look, I see, We can’t treat the nobles and princes of these countries badly. Should we build a theater nearby? This is what I think. Let them listen to more operas and appreciate the culture of my country. With a theater, it should be built. It is a square. The square needs to be bigger and better. Only in this way can we show our Ming Dynasty. But if there is a square, it is really unreasonable not to build a steam station. If the station is built, the nearby roads will also need to be repaired. I’m afraid. Look, there must be at least eight lanes. Eight carriages cannot go side by side. Wouldn’t it weaken the majesty of our lofty country? There is also a college here. I think we need to build a college. Let’s use the top-notch Xishan Meng College. It is a cooperative school. Wang and Sun. The nobles also have children. How can we educate them if they are not allowed to study? And here… this smelly ditch… No, this river is good, like a jade belt. Let’s repair it and build long embankments on both sides. Set up a walking trail, plant willow trees along the trail, and plant green plants and flowers nearby. This will make it more stylish. Here…and here…we need to recruit big businessmen and open department stores. People always need food, clothing, housing and transportation. , Providing them with some convenience is also my Ming Dynasty’s way of hospitality. The so-called friends coming from afar, it doesn’t mean that…”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Zhu Houzhao smiled brightly and nodded like a chicken pecking at rice. Eyes straightened.

Lao Fang knows so much, and he has obviously been thinking about this matter, but when the words come out of Lao Fang’s mouth, the taste is different.

Zhu Houzhao said with a smile: “That’s what I mean, Lao Fang, we coincide with each other again, no wonder my father asked you to join the cabinet, haha… That’s it. I won’t mention this matter, you go back In the cabinet, I am drafting a memorial. No, I cannot let you mention it, otherwise others will think it was my instruction. You can just find any disciple to present the memorial. When the memorial reaches the cabinet, you vote on it and say it is a good idea, and then The tickets are to be sent to me, and I will approve them myself. Hey… I am so worried about these nobles and grandsons. Oh, by the way, Lao Fang, you said that you have arranged so many good things. “Well, if we build some mansion nearby, how much can we sell it for?”

Fang Jifan coughed: “It’s… hard to say, Your Majesty… the key is to resettle the nobles and bring them into the capital to prevent them from causing trouble in various places, and also to deal with them. The vassals should strengthen their control. This is a move that benefits the country and the people, and is related to the national policy.”

Zhu Houzhao blushed slightly, clasped his hands behind his back, and resumed his dignified appearance, pretending to be understated. Nodding and nodding: “Yes, yes, I am a minister who plans the country.”

Zhu Houzhao immediately said: “Okay, what we have to do now are these two things. The second one is easy, but the first one… needs to be done. Immediately, people from the School of Engineering were ordered to go to all the states in the world to conduct exploration, and quickly drafted a regulation for the railway connection. The southeast, northwest, all need to be connected by railways. I want to build the railway to Liaodong, to the south of the Yangtze River, to Lanzhou, and to connect it first. As long as these are repaired, it will be much easier for me to attack Buchen when I arrive. In the future… these railways can be extended…”

“Your Majesty…” Fang Jifan interrupted Zhu Houzhao: “This is thousands of miles. Not to mention the engineering difficulty of the railway line, the School of Engineering has accumulated a lot of experience over the years, and can still overcome the technical difficulties. The key question is, where does the money come from? , with so many iron lumps, the cost per mile is hundreds or even thousands of taels of silver…”

Zhu Houzhao said seriously: “We can raise funds. At the beginning, the railway between Baoding and Beijing…”

Fang Jifan shook his head: “This is different. First of all, the railway lines between Baoding and Beijing are not very long, so the amount of money invested is very small. On the other hand, this railway line is in a prosperous place, so everyone thinks it is profitable. But if it is a thousand-mile railway, it will be profitable. It’s different. The cost is too high, and many places are not worth much. I’m afraid no one will be willing to spend this wasted money. I don’t know when the money will be recovered.”

When Zhu Houzhao heard this, he also felt it was reasonable. I have great ambitions in my heart, and I just want to implement all my plans overnight.

Everyone knows that railways are a good thing, but after all, the results are slow. If it is the railway from Beijing to Tianjin, there will be people rushing to repair it, but what about going to Lanzhou or Liaodong? But this… is an important place after all. Not to mention that there are countless minerals there that can be easily transported. Do the people in Liaodong and outside the pass just give up?

Zhu Houzhao said: “How about I go back and check the internal funds?”

Fang Jifan said with a smile: “Your Majesty, I’m afraid there is not much silver in the internal funds. Even if there is, the emperor will most likely need it to go to the Golden Continent. The need…”

Speaking of the Emperor, Fang Jifan couldn’t help but sigh in his heart, and he immediately cheered up.

The current emperor is very bold and enterprising. In ordinary people’s words, he is radical.

But in many cases, there is nothing wrong with being radical. After all… the railway will have to be repaired sooner or later.

Once the railway is connected, not only will it benefit commerce, but it will also have great benefits for the military.

If someone were to invade the Hexi Corridor at this time, in the past, the imperial court would have to prepare a hundred thousand troops to set off from the capital and go to Hexi. The food and drink along the way, as well as the time required for marching, would take a long time. By the time the reinforcements arrived, the day lilies would be cold. .

But if there is a railway, a large amount of materials and officers and soldiers can be mobilized immediately, and within a month, they can be quickly deployed thousands of miles away to fight. What this changes is the shape of the entire war.

Even… this is extremely conducive to the imperial court’s control of the place.

Everyone knows that the mountains are high and the emperor is far away. It sometimes takes several months or even half a year for an official to take office somewhere. If something happens there, it will be a month before the news reaches the capital. But once the railway is connected, the court can Being able to quickly learn about local problems is equivalent to… The place where the railway runs through is at the feet of the emperor.

Economy, administration, and military, these three aspects will undergo earth-shaking changes, so… Fang Jifan is determined to major in it, and the sooner the better.

Zhu Houzhao frowned. He looked very impatient, but when he heard the difficulty, he couldn’t help but get angry. That’s what his temper was like, he was an impatient person.

So he continued: “Old Fang, you should also think of a way, how about borrowing from the bank?”

“Loaning is not impossible, but the problem is that first the court must have a capital bank. Otherwise, it will completely rely on the bank to lend. After all, the money in the bank only belongs to the depositors. How can we divert so much money? Once more treasure banknotes are printed, it will inevitably cause the devaluation of the treasure banknotes. Your Majesty, this is not a long-term solution. “

My identity is different now. What I have done. Everything is responsible for many people, and Fang Jifan tried his best to analyze the pros and cons for him.

“No matter what!” Zhu Houzhao gritted his teeth: “You need to think of a way. This is the first thing I have done since I came to the throne. If I can’t do it well, how can I convince the public? You have just joined the cabinet. The so-called new official has taken office three times. Huo, Lao Fang, just think of a way. If it can be done, I will do your best, and I will never treat you badly.”

Fang Jifan smiled slyly: “Your Majesty, there is no way… His Majesty said to raise funds. Then just recruit funds. The key to the problem is who has so much money and whether they are willing to use it.”

“Well…” Zhu Houzhao was in trouble again.

Even if it is internal funds, the real money that can be taken out is limited. There is a lot of industry in Xishan, and Fang Jifan can certainly take out part of it, but after all…compared to Zhu Houzhao’s grand plan, it is still limited. Needless to say, the money in the national treasury is fixed and cannot be obtained for the time being.

As for those merchants, aren’t they expanding production like crazy now? People are still worried about not having enough money.

But the problem is, who else in this world can spend so much money?

Fang Jifan said thiefly: “Your Majesty, I have a plan, you can try it.”

“Huh?” Zhu Houzhao held his chin. At this time, he had to admire Fang Jifan.

You are the one with the most evil ideas.

………

Many ministers have become uneasy since the ceremony.

The next day, I heard that the emperor’s ranking list had started to be released.

Each mansion sent their servants to look at the list.

There were actually as many as a thousand ministers accompanying him this time.

There are even cabinet bachelors… such as cabinet bachelor Xie Qian, who is among them. Obviously, His Majesty still hopes to keep Liu Jian and Li Dongyang to assist the new emperor.

As for the ministers of various ministries, as well as Honglu Temple, Taichang Temple, Hanlin Academy, Ducha Yuan… these yamen actually took away more than half of them.

“Master…Master…” Someone came back crying.

Liu Jing, the Minister of Taichang Temple, reported illness directly today. He was too lazy to go on duty and was restlessly waiting for news at home. When he heard the voice of his old servant, his heart skipped a beat, and he saw the old servant rushing forward and bowing down. On the ground.

Liu Jing suddenly said: “How…how…” His lips trembled.

Sitting next to him were his two sons, who also looked uneasy.

His eldest son was lucky enough to win the imperial examination, which was also an honor. In addition, Liu Jing was the Minister of Taichang Temple. Through his operation, he was now on duty in the Ministry of Industry.

As for the second son… he is idle, but with the protection of his father and brother, he naturally has enough food and clothing.

“The names of the master and the eldest young master… are all on the list. They have to pack their belongings within half a month. Anyone who violates the rules will be punished for bullying the emperor and bring disaster to the whole family!”

Liu Jing suddenly felt dizzy, and the eldest son Liu Xuan beside him also felt that The moment he heard the bad news, his body trembled, and then he beat his chest and fell down: “Oh my God, we are going to kill them all!”

(End of this chapter)