Zhang Rang said: "Your Majesty, the minister has a suggestion, I don't know whether to say it or not." Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ”

"Haha, Zhang Changshi, what else can't you say? Even if it's wrong, I know you're kind, I don't blame you, come and hear it. ”

Zhang Rang was ruthless, as if he had made a lot of determination, and plucked up the courage to say: "Your Majesty, since you are also optimistic about this Gao Shun, you might as well make a big bet, I suggest that Dai County, Shanggu County, and Changshan Kingdom be sold to Gao Shun together; At the same time, Zhao Xiong, the magistrate of Mayi County, was transferred to serve as the Taishou of Yuyang County in recognition of his military exploits, which was regarded as giving them a little sweetness, and more importantly, it was different from Yanmen County, which was recommended by the Shi clan, so that Gao Shun and others could completely get rid of the relationship with the Shi clan; And the taxes of these four counties do not need to be handed over, so that they can be used to build an army and ensure the peace of the border; Let Gao Shun recommend another person to take over the post of magistrate of Mayi County, and Gao Shun will help protect Yanmen County, if they can ensure that Yanmen County is safe, then let them take over Yanmen County in the coming year, so that the entire Youmen and the two states will be safe; If they don't do well, they will all be dismissed next year, and these 4 counties can be sold again, and we will get 30 million dollars for nothing, if they do a good job, Your Majesty can recruit Gao Shun into Beijing next year to show the emperor's grace. ”

"How much did they pay?" This is the issue that Liu Hong is most concerned about.

"Back to Your Majesty, they have handed over three thousand gold."

Liu Hong was dissatisfied: "Won't we sell one less county?" And if you want to give him the tax revenue of the four counties, won't I lose a lot? ”

"Your Majesty, there are still a few counties left in Shanggu County and Dai County, there are not many people in total, most of the taxes of Changshan Country are for the use of King Changshan, the little money paid tribute is not worth mentioning, only Yuyang County is better, but it is often plundered by foreign races, if they can ensure the peace of the border, we will make a lot of money, and the military expenditure saved every year is a huge amount of wealth."

Liu Hong smiled: "Hehe, has the ability to ensure border tranquility?" They can't be overestimated because of a small victory. ”

Zhang Rang said: "Your Majesty, if they can't reach their ability, they can be removed at any time, and the initiative is in the hands of Your Majesty; Like Daijun and Shanggu County, not only do they have no taxes, but they also have to spend a lot of military expenses every year, which is not cost-effective, and it is already very good to be able to sell them. ”

The emperor has been poor since he was a child, and after becoming the emperor, he is particularly greedy for money. Then he asked, "If they are doing a good job, what can I do to keep them faithful?" ”

Zhang Rang said with a smile: "Your Majesty, you have taken many methods, such as giving banquets in the palace, holding coming-of-age ceremonies for him, giving table characters, and even choosing a clan daughter from the royal family to marry or marquis, etc., so that he will definitely be more loyal to His Majesty." ”

"Hehe, what Zhang Changshou said makes sense, but you are so optimistic about him and say good things for him, do you accept his benefits?"

Hearing the emperor say this, Zhang Rang was frightened, immediately knelt down, and defended: "Your Majesty, the minister is loyal to Your Majesty; The minister asked Xiao Huangmen, who went to pass the decree, asked him, he was unwilling to come to the court as an official, and was willing to stand on the border county and protect the safety of the township, such a warrior, as long as it is well controlled, it is definitely much safer than the Yongshi clan; This is all the true thoughts of the minister, all for the sake of His Majesty. ”

Liu Hong thought for a while, and then asked: "Then how many troops should they build?" If there is less, you can't keep the peace of the border county, and if you have more, I'm afraid that the tail will not fall off, it's really contradictory. ”

Zhang Rang thought for a moment and said: "Your Majesty, this is easy to do, let's give it a lot of autonomy in the county, like Mayi County; Your Majesty does not care about the number of troops they have formed, but it is necessary to control the salary level of their army, keep it the same as that of the northern army, and prevent them from robbing Dingrav and harming the counties, so that if they have money, they will recruit more soldiers, and if they have no money, they will recruit less, as long as they can protect the security of the border counties; If they have a large number of troops and strong combat effectiveness, His Majesty can also transfer some troops to support other places, so that it can also play a role in dividing and disintegrating and preventing their strength from over-expanding. ”

Emperor Liu Hong was very excited, his pale face suddenly turned ruddy, he thought to himself, if he did this, he would not suffer any loss, but he didn't know if Gao Shun would accept such harsh conditions.

So Liu Hong asked, "Then can they accept such conditions?" ”

Zhang Rang was also very embarrassed, that Gao Shun was not stupid, and after thinking for a while, he said: "Your Majesty, there are several ways, first, they paid 3,000 gold anyway, if they don't agree, we will get 3,000 gold for nothing, so they can only go to office; Second, a few well, when the time comes, Your Majesty will win over in time to show the emperor's favor, and they will definitely be loyal, and can only be attached to Your Majesty; Third, if some are not good, they will be removed one by one. Of course, I can't tell them about the transfer of their troops for the time being, and I'll talk about it when they become stronger. ”

After listening to Zhang Rang's words, Liu Hong's mind was also running rapidly, handing over the three counties of Youzhou and one county of Jizhou to one force, there was a lot of risk, not to mention whether they could guarantee the safety of the border counties, it was difficult to say now.

If they do a good job, and the border county is peaceful, then he will make a lot of money; If they are not competent, there is nothing to lose.

What's more, they are from good families, and they have offended all the scholars, and they are very easy to control.

However, the emperor has the emperor's thoughts, which is the ass determines the thoughts, and the emperor's grace must be given slowly, not to satisfy their desires at one time, but to hang their appetites, not only to prevent them from becoming bigger, forming a situation where the tail is big, but also to make them die for the court.

So Liu Hong said: "Shanggu County and Dai County are outside the Great Wall, and they are integrated in attack and defense, and they are sold to them together to facilitate their defense; For Ma Yi Zhao Xiong, he won a great victory in Ma Yi, and I rewarded him with 100 gold; If they have achieved outstanding results, they will be rewarded with Yanmen County next year, so that they can protect the frontier for me. ”

"Your Majesty, then you have to return the money to them?"

Zhang Rang originally thought that if His Majesty agreed to his plan, he would definitely ask Xiao Huangmen, who had passed the decree, to ask Gao Shun and others for the money of Yuyang County, at least 5 million yuan, no matter what the outcome of their development would be in the future, the money received would be his own money; If they can gain a foothold in a few counties, it will not be too late to gradually win them over at that time, anyway, they have offended all the scholars and can only rely on His Majesty the Emperor, so what is the difference between them and the group of eunuchs who are attached to them? Without the protection of the eunuchs, no matter how great their ability is, they will also be buried in the group beating of the scholars.

If there is a general with strong military power to support, the eunuch will have the upper hand in the battle with the scholars, so he strives to gradually grasp Gao Shun and others firmly in his hands, and become a big help or chess piece for them to fight against the scholars.

Unexpectedly, the emperor vetoed his opinion, which made him very disappointed.

"Hehe, how can there be any reason to return the money collected? I have decided to take your advice, and these two counties will give them full power to be the masters, and the counties they have recovered shall be appointed by them alone, and I will not charge any additional fees; The taxes of these two counties did not have to be handed over to the imperial court, and they were used to form an army. Liu Hong finally made up his mind, and said: "The autumn and winter season is coming soon, and the Xianbei army is about to go south, this winter should be regarded as a test for them, I hope they will not let me down." ”

Zhang Rang was in a hurry and hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, Shanggu County and Dai County need tens of millions of dollars each from Qingdao and Hebei Prefectures every year to survive, so how can they recruit and raise troops?" The border county is in danger. ”

"Haha, the financial resources of the border county can't raise many soldiers, so use his personal financial resources to raise soldiers; As for the scope of conscription, I allowed her to recruit at will in the three states of Bingzhou, Youzhou, and Jizhou, as long as he could raise it. Liu Hong is very happy to save 20 million dollars a year.

Since the emperor didn't want to sell them the position of taishou in the three counties, it was useless to persuade them, but he couldn't arouse the emperor's suspicion, so he had to adjust his thinking, Zhang Rang continued to suggest: "Your Majesty, the minister feels that this will affect your majesty's reputation, and the minister suggests that the minister of Changshan State be transferred to the post of captain of Wuhuan, so that your majesty can save 60 million yuan a year, and you don't have to return the money to them, and your majesty's reputation is maintained." ”

Liu Hong also wanted to use the captain of Huwuhuan to contain Gao Shun's development in Dai County and Shanggu County, if he sold the captain of Huwuhuan to them and gave them the right to be the master of the two counties, if they became bigger, it would be difficult to control it in the future; However, the annual cost of protecting the Wuhuan Captain's Mansion is too huge, not only to raise the army, but also to reward the Wuhuan people, it is not a good thing to be able to get rid of this burden, so Liu Hong decided to adopt Zhang Rang's suggestion after weighing the pros and cons, and said: "In this case, the reward of Zhao Xiong, the magistrate of Mayi County, will be gone, and any expenses of the Wuhuan Captain's Mansion will be paid by the two counties, and I will no longer bear any costs; In addition, since Daijun and Kamigu County are all part of their group, the qualification of the captain of the Wuhuan school is cancelled. ”

Zhang Rang secretly scolded in his heart, His Majesty can really calculate, really pick the door.