In the small ravine of Danyang County, Tai Lieutenant Li Rong personally watched the projectiles fired by the small steel cannon, and after a piece of mountain rock collapsed, his expression was greatly shaken.

With this kind of small steel cannon weighing 50 pounds that can be quickly transferred by horse-drawn carts, it no longer takes much effort to attack the city.

Li Rong immediately placed an order for 500 small steel cannons in the name of the Taiwei Mansion.

Ready to give to the army, armed with a large number of small steel cannons.

A small steel cannon costs 1,000 taels of silver, and here it is 500,000 taels of silver.

Plus the previous order of 10,000 gunpowder guns and 500,000 taels of silver.

These new gunpowder equipment are enough to equip a new army of 10,000 people.

Add it up, and that's a million taels of silver.

With silver, it is easy to do things, and this silver alone is enough for Danyang County to expand the scale of heavy industry and speed up the production of weapons.

Chu Tianxiu personally arranged for the expansion of heavy industry in Danyang County, mass production of gunpowder barrels and small steel cannons.

……

Flash.

Two months passed.

Chu Tianxiu, the Yin of Jinling Mansion, took office for two months. The three major infrastructure projects of Jinling City, digging sewage ditches, expanding roads, and increasing the forts of the city wall, were basically completed under the hard work of 30,000 migrant workers.

If you don't finish it, you won't be able to do it!

The 500,000 taels of silver in Jinling Mansion were all used up. There was no money to pay the workers, so they had to dismiss the migrant workers.

Shao Yin Zhengbai, Wang Mu and the officials of the Sixth Division were secretly happy in their hearts, and in the past two months, Xiao Duhou was in high spirits, demolishing and scattering silver everywhere, and the people applauded. Now that I have no money, what should I do if I look at Lord Yin?!

Want money?

Looking for the Prime Minister's Mansion, Master Kong Hanyou applied to go!

Bow your head and be soft, obedient and obedient, less tossing and less trouble, Master Kong will naturally set aside a little silver.

……

Palace.

The Imperial Study.

Emperor Xiang Yanran paced in the study, his face sad.

What are you worried about?

Of course, it's money.

Last time, Cai and the great eunuch came back from Danyang County to report that the artillery was extremely powerful. A small steel cannon is as powerful as a heavy stone thrower, but it costs a thousand taels of silver.

The Taiwei Mansion prepared to build a new army of 10,000 people, and spent one million taels of silver on the purchase of muskets and artillery, as well as military salaries, horses, grain and grass, etc., no less than two or three million taels of silver.

What's more, the Great Chu Dynasty also raised hundreds of thousands of border troops and hundreds of thousands of war horses.

The huge court is full of places where money is used.

"Silver, silver!"

"I have collected the world's copper coins, and the treasury has doubled, but it is still not enough to spend."

The Emperor muttered to himself.

Thinking of accumulating wealth, he immediately thought of Chu Tianxiu.

He was not without the idea of collecting money.

Dongfang Su, Sang Hongyang, Dongguo Xiangyang, Kong Jing and other new science and technology scholars have all contributed a lot of ideas. If the local salt tax and iron tax are collected from the central government, a large amount of silver can be collected.

However, if you loot money, you will offend people.

It takes someone to take the blame.

These new science and technology scholars are too weak, they have no official body and no background, and they can't afford to carry these pots.

If they make a speech at the imperial court, it is estimated that they will not see the sun the next day.

Xiao Duhou is undoubtedly a very suitable candidate for the blame.

Fighting is strong.

It's especially carryable!

It's not easy to die.

"Xuan Xiao Duhou enters the palace! I have a pot ......, no, I have a gift for him. ”

Xiang Yanran groaned.

"Yes, the old slave will go to the Pingwang Mansion now!"

Cai and the great eunuch had strange expressions and hurried away.

An hour later.

Emperor Xiang Yanran was in the imperial study and saw the little dusk marquis.

"Your Majesty, I don't know what summoned you?"

Chu Tianxiu bowed, a little cautious.

"I bought you this artillery musket with a lot of silver! I'm a little tight on hand, how about you play a book? ”

Xiang Yanran pointed to a few books on the desk.

Chu Tianxiu looked at it, but it was Sang Hongyang, Dongguo Xiangyang, Kongjing and other imperial examination scholars, the examination papers in the palace examination.

It is "Salt and Iron Monopoly", "Salt Policy", and "Iron Policy".

"This ...... They wrote it, so why don't they let them go to the court themselves?"

Chu Tianxiu was taken aback, and immediately shook his head, unable to live or die.

He's okay when he's full, why do you want to poke this hornet's nest?

"With their little strength, they have no power or power, and if they dare to write this policy in the court, it is estimated that even the ancestral grave will be dug out.

I see them as talents, and I don't want them to die young!

They are also your protégés of the examiner, and you can't bear to watch them die?"

Emperor Xiang Yanran said gloomily, "As soon as "Salt and Iron Monopoly" comes out, how many heads will be lost?!"

Salt is on the southeast coast, and the vassal states of Wu, Chu, Jiaodong, and Jiaoxi have a large amount of sea salt. King Wu will definitely not sit idly by.

Iron, Yan Zhao is extremely much. King Zhao will definitely resist desperately.

Whoever makes this decision will definitely be regarded as a thorn in the side of the princes.

However, you don't care about it. When the "Policy for Banning Copper Coins" was presented, it had already offended the princes of the world. There is the Li family of the Ping Palace, and others can't move you.

On the same day, at your engagement banquet, I promised to leave you the Danyang Iron Mine. But there is no basis for empty words, if I repent, your Danyang County iron mine will also be returned to the imperial court.

As long as you offer this policy, I will now make a holy decree, and after promulgating the monopoly of salt and iron, the salt and iron in the world will be collected by the imperial court. The iron mine in Danyang County will always belong to you Li Chu, and it will never be among the banned iron.

In addition to the imperial court can smelt iron and sell iron, you can sell iron privately in your Danyang fiefdom. ”

"Alright! Minister, liver and brain are smeared!"

Chu Tianxiu thought for a moment and said helplessly.

Salt and iron monopoly, it's a matter of time. In order to solve the financial problems, the imperial court had to monopolize these two revenues. This has been the case throughout dynasties, with very few exceptions.

This is the trend of the times, and it is not something he can stop.

If the emperor was a scoundrel, he was not allowed to smelt iron in Danyang County, and he would have no choice.

Now that the emperor has allowed him to buy iron, there is a holy purpose given by the emperor, and it is better to make a special case for him than to say nothing.

Late at night.

Chu Tianxiu returned to Yu Garden, Pingwangfu.

Li Yu was waiting in Yu Garden, and when he saw Chu Tianxiu coming back, he was relieved and asked, "Husband, what did the emperor call you for?"

"Discussing the monopoly of salt and iron, the emperor asked me to collect salt and iron in a book. In exchange, I was given a holy decree that the Danyang fief could be sold for iron. …… It's a little cold, and it looks like it's going to be windy. I'm afraid that this matter will implicate the Pingwang Mansion and make you worried. ”

Chu Tianxiu took out a holy decree, gave it to Li Yu, and shook his head.

"I'll get you some clothes.

It doesn't hurt if the wind rises, I haven't seen any strong wind in Pingwangfu!

There are hundreds of children of our Li family, and I don't know how many people have died on the battlefield, and we haven't been afraid of anyone. ”

Li Yu said with a smile.

"On the side of the Ping Wangfu, let the children of the Li family carry swords and soldiers and be on guard at any time.

In addition, I will transfer another Danyang elite soldier to strengthen the protection of the Pingwang Mansion, so that you can mobilize them at any time.

This is urgent, I'm afraid that they will jump over the wall in a hurry and sneak into Jinling City to assassinate! Those princes, each with tens of thousands of mercenaries, are not easy to mess with. ”

Chu Tianxiu said.

Li Yu nodded slightly.

It's good to be more prepared.