Shanxi's railways are narrow-gauge, which is very different from the national railway system. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 infoWhoever wants to lead the army into Shanxi, first has to collect trains that match the model, otherwise they can only march on foot.

When Yan Xishan built the railway, he already had an ambition to support the army and self-government.

Zhou Hexuan looked through the car window, looking at the continuous farmland outside, as well as the rising cooking smoke, and couldn't help but admire: "Yan Laoxi's means of governing the place are very clever, looking at the scene, Shanxi is actually more comfortable and rich than some provinces in the south." ”

Sun Yongzhen said with a smile: "Shanxi is better. ”

Sun Yonghao was in the opposite tone: "It's not the same, everywhere the people at the bottom are poor." ”

Zhou Hexuan asked curiously: "What do you say?" ”

Sun Yonghao introduced the situation in Shanxi: "The peaceful years are fine, but once the war starts, it will be uncomfortable." The military masters are exploiting in every way, and the little people are struggling to survive, if Shanxi is really so rich, how can Brother Ehe go out to wander? “

When Zhou Hexuan heard this, his heart immediately became clear.

Some people say that Shanxi is the richest province in the Republic of China, some people say that Shanxi is the happiest place in the Republic of China, and some people even compare Yan Xishan to the Duke of Jin Wen in the Republic of China.

However, if you think about it carefully, the population of Shanxi is just over 10 million, agriculture is definitely not as prosperous as in the south, and industry is not necessarily more developed than in the Yangtze River valley, how did Yan Xishan feed his 200,000 or 300,000 troops?

Raising military funds is the most important thing for every warlord, and it is always the common people who are exploited. The military expenditure organising organ called the military station, and the seizure was the main means, and every place they went, the granary, the house, and the means of transportation had to be affixed with a note with the content of "The division of such and such a division has been sealed."

If these things belong to big bureaucrats, big landlords, or big warlords, they can raise supplies from elsewhere through the government. If the owner is a big businessman, he can pay for the army to requisition it elsewhere. In any case, the rich and powerful will not suffer, and in the end it will be passed on to the small landlords, rich peasants, and poor peasants.

According to some data, on the eve of the outbreak of the Central Plains War, the military salary tax in the northern part of Shanxi was 225 times higher than the regular tax, ranking first in the country.

After knowing these circumstances, do you still think that the people of Shanxi under Yan Xishan's rule are happy and wealthy?

Yan Xishan was more clever than ordinary warlords in that he ran education, developed industry, exterminated bandits, and persuaded farmers to ...... A series of good governance has been implemented. The people are not from the scourge of bandits, they are not from the danger of soldiers, and they are indeed much happier than other provinces.

But once there is a war, the original form will be immediately exposed, because the army burns too much silver, and the money is transferred to the common people.

Zhou Hexuan couldn't help but sigh in his heart when he thought of the Central Plains War two years later. It was the largest civil war during the Republic of China, with a total of more than 1.1 million troops invested by all sides, affecting more than 20 provinces, and more than 300,000 officers and soldiers were killed or wounded.

How good it would be to keep all this money, weapons, and troops to fight the Japanese devils!

Chang Kaishen's political cutting of the feudal domain was too hasty, just like Zhu Yunwen back then, forcing all the warlords to the opposite side of the central government. Fortunately, Chang Kaishen is good at buying, once the battlefield is unfavorable, he uses money to dig into the corner of the opponent's wall, and he really let him win.

In order to get Zhang Xueliang's support, Chang Kaishen directly sent someone to bring a huge sum of 20 million yuan. not only spent money to buy Zhang Xueliang, but even the staff, secretaries, adjutants and guards around Zhang Xueliang belonged to the bribery ranks.

Once, the representative sent by Chang Kaishen invited the Northeast dignitaries to dinner, and after the meal, they played mahjong, and each person had 20,000 yuan in a drawer, and no matter whether they won or lost, they would go to the people who sat down.

As for the two representatives sent by Yan Xishan, one brought 1,000 yuan, and the other came to the door with 500 yuan. The first time they went, they successfully met Zhang Xueliang, and the second time they went, they were directly blasted out by the gate.

The Great War of the Central Plains, that was the victory of money.

……

Zhou Hexuan arrived in Taiyuan along the Zhengtai Railway and went to Yan Xishan's official residence to cast his business card, only to be told by the guards that Minister Yan (Minister of the Interior) was not there. Zhou Hexuan thought that he had less money, and sent another 50 oceans, and the guards finally revealed the news: Yan Xishan was inspecting the arsenal.

Waited until the next day, Zhou Hexuan came to cast a business card again, but Yan Xishan was still not there, and I heard that he went to the next county to inspect the chemical plant.

Zhou Hexuan was speechless, waited for six days in a row, and finally saw Yan Laoxi, a busy man.

To be honest, Yan Xishan is relatively simple among the warlords. Although his old mansion in Wutai County is magnificent, after more than ten years of expansion, the total cost is only more than 1 million, and it is for the whole family to live.

As for Yan Xishan's Taiyuan mansion, it covers a small area, and it is very ordinary inside and out, which is not as good as the local wealthy merchants' residences.

Yan Xishan sat in the living room, and after the adjutant brought Zhou Hexuan in, he laughed and said, "Mr. Zhou, why did you come to my poor country?" ”

Yan Xishan is 1.83 meters tall and has a burly and powerful appearance, but his temperament is very easy-going, and he sits there like a businessman.

"Hello Minister Yan, I'm here to send you a pennant." Zhou Hexuan held out a pennant and said.

Yan Xishan asked the adjutant to open the pennant, but saw that there were eight words written on it: Only Honglongde, Yurun the world.

Translated into the vernacular, it probably means that Yan Xishan worked hard to establish education, cultivate talents for the country, pursue good moral character, and benefit all the people of the world.

"Haha, it can't be, it can't be." Yan Xishan laughed heartily, obviously being slapped by these eight words.

Zhou Hexuan said with a serious expression: "Education is the foundation of national rejuvenation, and basic education is the top priority. Nowadays, all the public attaches great importance to higher education, because it is easy to produce results in universities, while basic education is often neglected. Minister Yan has run compulsory education in Shanxi, where 70 percent of school-age children are enrolled, the highest in the country, and Jiangsu is only 20 percent. ”

Yan Xishan was even happier when his most proud political achievement was mentioned, and he said with a smile: "Mr. Zhou is talking about the data from three years ago, and now the enrollment rate of primary school students in Shanxi has reached 74%. ”

Zhou Hexuan continued to pat himself on the back and said: "I heard that in major cities and counties in Shanxi, school-age children who do not attend school without reason will be fined 1 to 5 yuan. Children over the age of 10 who are out of school will be fined $1 for each year of age. This move is similar to the education policy of the Prussian kings in history, and He Xuan admires it very much. ”

Yan Xishan said with a smile: "I really let Mr. Zhou guess correctly." I was imitating Prussia, not only in terms of education, but also in the German iron-blooded way of running the army. ”

"This is a blessing for the people of Shanxi." Zhou Hexuan flattered, but sighed in his heart: Yan Xishan's civil affairs ability is extremely strong, but unfortunately his strategic vision is too short-sighted, and he doesn't have the slightest long-term plan, and he only thinks about taking care of his own one-third of an acre.

Before the Central Plains War, Chang Kaishen put his knife on Yan Xishan's neck, and he still wanted to be a wall-riding faction to reap the benefits.

Feng Yuxiang took his wife to Taiyuan in person, hoping to unite with Yan Xishan to fight against the central government. How did Yan Xishan do it? He actually kept Feng Yuxiang (house arrest) with good wine and food, and then used it as a bargaining chip to put pressure on Chang Kaishen.

Chang Kaishen immediately appointed Yan Xishan as deputy commander-in-chief of the army, navy, and air force, which actually made Yan Xishan complacent, thinking that he was sitting in the second position of the national government.

If the Three Kingdoms are compared to the Republic of China, Yan Xishan is probably equivalent to Liu Biao.

After patting the fart, Zhou Hexuan took out another gift, handed it to Yan Xishan and said, "Minister Yan, in addition to the pennant, I still came to give you a bell today." ”

Yan Xishan looked at the small pendulum clock, and his face suddenly became gloomy.