Moreover, it also involves the Longtangou section of Luonan County, the source of Luoshui, which is a ten-mile mountain stream section.

As a result, the northbound river channel is quite narrow, and if the 10-mile section of the river is not widened, even if the 260-odd miles are completely connected, the practical problem cannot be solved.

Luoshui is the later Luohe River, the origin is the Longtan Ditch in the depths of the Qinling Mountains in Luoyuan Town, Luonan County, and it is the only river that flows into the Yellow River.

The Grand Canal of the Sui Dynasty was centered on Luoyang, and the Luohe River in the Luoyang Basin naturally became the center of the imperial river and the canal.

As early as the Western Han Dynasty, the grain transported from Luoyang to Chang'an was as much as 4 million stone every year.

However, the Cao Yun from Luoyang stopped at the north end of the Longtan Ditch, and the remaining less than 300 miles needed to be carried by manual shoulders and carried through a section of the mountain before it could be sent to the outer official road and horses.

Often the Cao transport fleet transported from Luoyang came to Longtangou for only two days and two nights, but only after carrying a section of the mountain, it required a large number of artificial seven days and seven nights.

This shows the complexity of the terrain of that section of the mountain.

If the ten-mile narrow mountain stream can be widened enough for ships to pass through, and more than 260 miles of tributaries can be connected, you can directly reach the Weihe River section in Chang'an City.

In this way, the food shortage embarrassment that has plagued Chang'an City for thousands of years will be completely resolved.

It is the ten-mile section of the river, but it belongs to the scope of responsibility of the imperial court, and because of the great difficulty, the specific cost may far exceed the remaining two hundred and sixty miles of excavation.

As a result, this historical legacy has been postponed indefinitely.

Now Li Zhi is willing to use the shipping qualification of a giant ship in exchange for the penetration of this waterway, which is why Bian Jiong admires Li Zhi in his heart.

"I also know that it is not easy to widen the Longtangou River section, but if it continues to delay, it will be millions of people in Chang'an City who will be affected. Brother Baochang, my plan is to take the initiative to excavate the remaining 260 miles to urge the imperial court to do something about this matter, how sure do you think it is? ”

Without Bian Jiong's response, King Song on the side was shouting:

"So it can be solved like this? In this way, it is equivalent to saving tens of thousands of taels of expenses for the imperial court, otherwise the connection of the two sections of the river will cost a total of about 100,000 taels, and I think the imperial court has no reason to prevaricate! ”

Under the authority of King Song, he is not directly related to Caoyun, but he also has the qualification to inquire about the overall management.

Compared with him, the king of Bawang Jiancheng has direct management authority, although there is a direct management department of the Ministry of Industry and Water Division, but Caoyun has most of the direct management power of the military.

And he also controls the custodian of the national money valley, and knows the way better:

"What is said is that with such favorable conditions, the imperial court should be tight no matter how tight the treasury is, and it must also do its best to complete this historical problem. Chang'an City is also the capital of the Tang Dynasty, and it should become the face of the Tang Dynasty in the real sense as soon as possible, and it is undoubtedly imperative to solve the problem of food shortage. This is a great opportunity for the imperial court! ”

King Song continued: "With the assistance of civil forces throughout the process, it is not only a simple matter of political performance, but also a good story of the government and the people in a considerable sense, and it is a typical example of unity and progress that can be recorded in history!" ”

Li Zhi laughed and waved his hand:

"Forget it, what is the whole process of assistance, Lord Songwang should not use these obscure words to deceive us ordinary people. The Bian family is only responsible for the remaining more than 260 miles, and the ten-mile widening of Longtangou is not in the private capital! ”

"Capital? Another new word! King Jiancheng also laughed loudly, "King Song also said casually, the responsible part of the court, one or two will not be missing, you Li Zhengwen can hear it clearly!" ”

Bian Jiong pouted and argued:

"As Mr. Li said, the two adults rarely come to these vague words, and when the time comes, when the imperial court encounters temporary difficulties in allocating the silver taels, you will pay in advance, and the first treasury will complete the replenishment, and you will definitely return in time! Adults, I'm not saying this in a strong way, am I? It's not speculation, it's your own way of doing things, right? ”

King Song held back an embarrassed smile: "In fact, tens of thousands of taels are already three to four percent of the annual income of the national treasury, and they ...... all of a sudden."

Li Zhi shook his head and looked at Bian Jiong:

"Then this kind of exchange method, we will change to other ways to solve it, especially in the current situation, I don't see that Luoyang City is building a large number of buildings? That's part of the treasury, and I took it for granted! ”

Different from King Jiancheng's one-bite promise, King Song's bargaining method is because he is directly responsible for the implementation of many projects.

For example, the construction of construction in Luoyang City at this time is also part of his authority, and Wu Zetian used such an excuse to stay in Luoyang.

The king of Jiancheng is different, he only needs to sign and transfer, and the actual implementation has little to do with him.

King Song has too much silver for his subordinates, and the total number is those, and it is also a helpless move to favor one over the other, and when he can pit the Bian family, he will never be soft.

Therefore, Li Zhi quickly sensed this kind of key through Bian Jiong's resentment, and only then did he clearly express his wishes.

Seeing that the two had formed an alliance in a very short period of time, King Song suddenly felt a big head, but he would never give up this opportunity.

Obviously, it is rare for private funds to take such an initiative to participate in the construction of the river, and for any imperial court, if it succeeds, it will be a great achievement for the benefit of the country and the people.

What is even more rare is that the government's contribution in this is only half of the original plan, and even if the national treasury is tight, it will never let go of this good opportunity.

In other words, the project has a great chance of passing, and in this strange situation, it is possible for the various factions to temporarily unite in order to make a merit for themselves before the possible change of dynasty.

After all, in this era, there are still many people who do things sincerely, and the idea of serving the emperor wholeheartedly in exchange for trust is still the mainstream.

Therefore, there was no need for King Song to speak, King Li Kai was already hurriedly stopped:

"Mr. Li, Baochang, this matter should be discussed in the long run, in fact, everyone present said that it doesn't matter, you might as well report to the emperor, and make the final decision by the holy will!"

Even if the current puppet emperor is present, the normal process cannot be overcome, although he knows that the twists and turns will still fall into the hands of the queen mother.

It is a major project involving tens of thousands of taels, and it needs to be decided by this emperor-like figure.

Li Zhi and Bian Jiong frequently exchanged glances, at this moment the two of them have the same thoughts, such a large expenditure, and it is a critical project that may take several years to complete, once it is presented, the conditions related to their own interests are proposed, and they will face a lot of pressure.

So the next moment, the two shook their heads at the same time, and Li Zhi first stated the reason:

"We haven't come up with a specific plan yet, and we don't have the slightest guarantee premise for the relevant projects of the imperial court, so I don't think there will be results in the report at this time."

Bian Jiong also spoke immediately: "The expenditure of at least 30,000 taels of silver, even if it doesn't need to be collected in the first year, it is a big pressure, this matter should be cautious first, and it is not appropriate to draw conclusions too early!" ”

In fact, everyone else knew the inner concerns of the two of them, especially King Jiancheng, who sang a high-pitched voice about King Song's almost shameless voice, and had a helpless face:

"King Song, I know that you have a lot of projects at hand, and they have already done so, and if such a major project is approved, there will be a danger of causing the treasury to be empty. But this must not be caused to die halfway, sometimes practical difficulties and high-profile praise have nothing to do, after all, the silver from the people, and the credibility of the court is more important than not. If only a little sign appears like you, you will put on a huge crown that benefits the country and the people, and it will only scare away the enthusiasm of the people! ”

He has a good personal relationship with King Song, and who can achieve his current position is not a shrewd person, of course, those who rise to the top through nepotism, such as nouveau riche, and some people in the martial arts family are another matter.

Especially the person who was promoted by Gaozong and not the Empress Wu at that time, he was a leader who was dedicated to the public, and when he encountered major issues, his personal feelings would automatically fall to second place.

King Song didn't know that he was indeed in a hurry, relatively speaking, King Li Kai, who was older, thought more comprehensively.

He questioned King Song first, and in the face of such a major matter, he was even more unforgiving:

"What the Eight Kings said is that the unfinished decision of the first king is very improper, and besides, such a huge project is doomed to the extension of the construction period, and the cost of silver must not be compared with a one-time mobilization. This matter can be reported in the form of advice, not by your own decision before the collective effort! ”

Although his tone was soothing, his words were full of criticism, and King Song sweated on his forehead.

Moreover, there is another deep meaning in the accusation at this time, once similar remarks are transmitted to the Queen Mother, no matter how big or small the consequences are, a word negligence cannot be avoided.

King Li Kai chose to speak out at this time, maybe he didn't like it very much, and it was much less influential than feeding back to the Queen Mother.

Even if King Song's starting point is from the perspective of the fundamental interests of the imperial court, the sin of private capital launched by this is great.

So King Song apologized to Li Zhi and Bian Jiong for the first time: "It's me who didn't think about it first, and almost hit the enthusiasm of the two, so I'm here to accompany the two!" ”

As he took a sip of the wine in the cup, Li Zhi said happily:

"It's a matter of business, but it's paid for by private individuals, especially this amount is likely to be very staggering, and the official rhetoric of Lord Songwang is very insincere. To put it mildly, the cost price of an ocean-going freighter is between 13,000 taels and 5,000 taels, and the general cost of digging a river channel for more than 260 miles is about 20,000 taels. As before, find a name and let others pay for the ten-mile widening in advance, and my deal can be regarded as a pit for the Bian family. Buyers and sellers pay attention to integrity, no matter how difficult the court is, what does it have to do with the two of us? ”

"Yes, yes, I'm a little wishful thinking!" King Song hurriedly accompanied him.