Chapter 536: Take precautions and prevent trouble

According to Zhang Zhun's estimate, after the third entry of the Tartars into the Ming Dynasty last year, the productive forces in the northern part of the Ming Kingdom have not yet recovered. Coupled with the persistently dry weather, a failed harvest is a foregone conclusion. Even those who are lucky enough to survive have to consider whether they will be able to survive this difficult winter. The imperial court's disaster relief capabilities, like its combat effectiveness, do not need to be counted on at all.

Its own food supply is insufficient, the government's disaster relief is ineffective, and the Tartars may come. In the northern part of the Ming Kingdom, there is a high probability of a refugee influx. The direction of the refugee flow can only be south, all the way south until it crosses the Yellow River. Henan has just been ravaged by war, so don't expect many refugees to be accepted there. Only Shandong is relatively stable for the time being, especially the three western prefectures of Shandong.

Once a large number of refugees pour into Shandong, it will inevitably bring huge food pressure to Shandong. With Zhu Dadian's personality, he must have driven these refugees to Zhang Zhun's territory. Zhang Zhun now really needs a large amount of labor to enrich the Dengzhou and Laizhou capitals. Therefore, he will not refuse the arrival of these refugees. Gao Hongtu initially estimated that about 500,000 refugees might arrive in Denglai and the two provinces, and the Tiger Ben army would need a lot of food to help them.

October's bumper grain harvest was precisely prepared for this. In addition to the tax of 40 catties of rice per mu, Zhang Zhun also ordered to buy as much grain as possible and reserve it for emergencies. According to the relevant laws of the Tiger Army, grain cannot be bought and sold freely, but can only be sold to the state. In other words, it is sold to the Tiger Army. Anyone who violates such a law will be severely punished.

The grain purchase price offered by the Tiger Benjun cannot be higher than the market price, but it will not be much lower. Optimistically, it should be possible to buy a million stone of grain. According to the calculation of one tael and two cents of silver per stone of grain, it will cost 1,200,000 taels of silver. Of course, it is impossible for the Tiger Ben Army to take out so much silver. But everything is flexible, isn't it? The Tiger Army has resources that can be exchanged for food.

Zhang Zhun has designed an interesting contribution value system. Contributions are not only available to the military, but also to ordinary people. As long as you do something beneficial to the Tiger Army, you will receive contribution points. For the time being, it is calculated according to one tael of silver and one contribution value. Farmers who sell grain to the Tiger Army, each person can get a corresponding contribution value according to the price of the grain. This contribution can be exchanged for special titles (not the same as military titles), for mines, and even for woodlands, lakes, seas, etc.

For example, Chen Guoxi's family can get a total of twenty-four contribution points for selling twenty stones of grain to the Tiger Ben Army. According to the initial setting of the contribution value, he can be exchanged for a piece of forest land for forestry development. Or exchange it for a pond to raise fish. Woodlands and ponds are auctioned through public auctions. Whoever contributes the most will receive ownership of the forest land and ponds.

For example, if you have a big lake or a good mine, one or two people can't buy it, but you can combine several people to make up enough contribution points and then work together to buy the lake and the mine. Outsiders can also buy these properties. However, they must hand over the silver to the relevant departments of the Tiger Army and exchange it for contribution points. It is not possible to buy it directly with silver.

Why not let the people buy these woodlands, ponds, lakes and mines directly with silver? Therein lies the particularity. If you buy it directly with silver, it is not easy for Zhang Zhun to control it. After all, the number of silver taels is constant, and Zhang Zhun has great ability, and it is impossible to increase the number of silver taels forcefully. Just like gold, silver is a hard currency, and it is unlikely that it will increase suddenly in the short term.

However, the contribution value is only a numerical value. At certain times, Zhang Zhun can do tricks. This contribution value is like the paper money of later generations, just a kind of credit currency. How much to send and how much to take back are all controlled by the ruler. Of course, these involve core secrets, and the general public will never know about them. And for the sake of his own future, Zhang Zhun will not mess around with the contribution value.

The advantage of having a contribution value is that in the internal control area of the Tiger Army, the contribution value can be used to gradually replace traditional currencies such as gold, silver taels, and copper coins. In general, internal transactions are carried out through contribution points, and traditional currencies such as gold, silver, and copper coins obtained by the Tiger Ben Army can be gradually stored in a centralized manner as a backup. It is only used for external exchanges.

In fact, to put it bluntly, this contribution value is the treasure banknote once issued by the Ming Dynasty, which is a kind of paper money. The commercial trade of the Ming Dynasty was very prosperous, and there was a basis for the issuance of paper money. It's just that the ruler is anxious for quick success and quick profit, ignoring the laws of the economy, and cripples the treasure money. The people of the Ming Dynasty were very resistant to treasure money. Of course, Zhang Zhun would not do such a stupid thing.

The reason why the contribution value is used instead of the direct issuance of paper money is also to take into account the people's resistance to treasure money. If Zhang Zhun issued banknotes now, maybe someone would protest immediately, and he wouldn't want to use a single banknote. The people really hated the previous treasure money.

And change a vest, put on a term like contribution value, and then let the propaganda department publicize it with great fanfare, the Tartars are coming, everyone has to contribute to the Tiger Army, etc., you can effectively cover up the essence of issuing banknotes. After everyone slowly gets used to the contribution value transaction, and then slowly turns the contribution value into paper money, it will be a matter of course.

Of course, this is the most ideal situation. After all, Zhang Zhun is not a currency expert, and it is impossible to guarantee that there will be no problems at all. So, his plan is gradual, take it one step at a time. At the moment, there is only a transaction with the Tiger Army, and the contribution value system is mandatory. For other transactions, traditional currencies continue to be used. Take a multi-pronged approach and see how it works.

"My lord, the battle report sent by Laiyang!"

Staff officer Ye Longxin arrived in a hurry and sent information from the front.

Laiyang was successfully conquered, and the Wenxiang Sect disciples trapped in Laiyang were either killed or captured alive, and only a very small number of them escaped. According to preliminary statistics, the Tiger Ben army wiped out about 30,000 Smelling Fragrance Cultists in total. However, Yang Zhiyuan regretfully reported a big problem, that is, Wang Yilun is missing. Since the Tiger Ben army surrounded Laiyang, there was no trace of Wang Yilun.

At present, the various units of the Tiger Ben Army, which encircled and suppressed the Wenxiang Sect, have severed the relationship between Laiyang and Qixia. All the remaining Smelling Fragrance Sect members were locked in Qixia territory. Xu Qingluan and Dong Shuyan are among them. If the two of them escaped without makeup, they would definitely not be able to escape from the palm of the Tiger Army. Qi Xia's Smelling Fragrance Sect disciples, numbering about 10,000 people, are definitely not the opponents of the Tiger Ben Army.

Immediately following the Tiger Army, the Ministry of Government concentrated manpower, material and financial resources to launch a campaign to divide fields and land in Laiyang, and distributed a large amount of land to the local people. At the same time, we will intensify publicity efforts to analyze the scam of Wenxiangjiao. In order to free Laiyang from the control of the Wenxiang Sect as soon as possible, Zhang Shenyan also went to Laiyang in person to cooperate with Liu Baoyu, Hou Shanping, Yang Liren and others before.

After getting tangible benefits and recognizing the essence of the Wenxiang Sect, the local residents of Laiyang stood up one after another to expose the remnants of the Wenxiang Sect. As soon as someone is exposed, the Tiger Army immediately arrests someone. Soon, most of the remnants of the Wenxiang Sect hidden in Laiyang were captured, and only a few escaped. Yang Zhiyuan estimated that this Wang Yilun may be among them.

Considering that the west of Laiyang is under the jurisdiction of Laizhou Mansion, and the public base here is quite good, it is difficult for Wang Yilun and others to escape from Laizhou Mansion. Therefore, it is very likely that Wang Yilun ran to Qixia, preparing to gather the remnants of the Smelling Fragrance Sect, and the beast was still fighting. Qixia is different from Laiyang, and the surroundings of Qixia are more mountainous, with high mountains and dense forests, and many caves, which are more conducive to hiding.

"Search carefully!"

"You have to see people in life, and you have to see corpses in death!"

"We must dig out Wang Yilun's whereabouts!"

Zhang Zhun calmly gave instructions.

Ye Longxin quickly recorded it, and then arranged for the Communications Association to send the order out.

A moment later, the people from the staff came again, and it turned out that the information sent by Ma Yi had arrived.

After reading the information, Zhang Zhun rarely stood up and paced. Ma Yi's intelligence mainly reported that a large number of natives had moved south to Shenyang, and speculated that the Tatars were very likely to attack in winter. From Ma Yi's intelligence, what Zhang Zhun felt was not the strengthening of the Tartars' forces, nor the time when the Tartars were about to launch a military operation, but the determination of the Tartars.

In order to enter the Kou this time, Huang Taiji actually even gathered the natives of Sakhalin Island.

What kind of egg-sore spirit is this?

No way!

O Sakhalin!

Sakhalin Island, which is at least a few thousand kilometers away from Shenyang!

Huang Taiji actually mobilized even the natives of Sakhalin Island for this entry into the Koukou. It can be seen how determined he is. Zhang Zhun could simply see Huang Taiji's gritted teeth through Ma Yi's intelligence. In order to avenge the revenge of one arrow, Huang Taiji may have really let it go this time. If you don't kill him Zhang Zhun and rescue Dolgon and Duoduo in Dengzhou City, I'm afraid Huang Taiji will definitely not give up.

In fact, Zhang Zhun didn't care much about the combat effectiveness of these natives. When the natives of Sakhalin come to Shenyang, it will be next summer. Therefore, at most, only half of the natives can participate in the battle. The problem is that even the natives of Sakhalin Island have been called, which shows that the appeal of Huang Taiji is still quite strong. It was at this time that the jade seal of the country came into play. Unite people's hearts and enhance their appeal.

And the arrival of a large number of natives will also increase the morale of the Tartars. Morale seriously affects the combat effectiveness of the troops, and absolutely no one will ignore this. A moraleless unit, no matter how well equipped, is still a cup, and it can only be the role of the captain of the transportation brigade, just look at Chang Kaishen's fate. The current Ming Army is basically this role. On the contrary, no matter how poor the equipment is, as long as the morale is high, the battle can still be won. This can refer to the Red Army at various times.

In all fairness, the morale of the Tartars was quite high every time they engaged. In terms of equipment, the Tartars were no match for the Ming army at all. When the boar skin was born, there were only thirteen pairs of armor, and the poor jingle sounded. In terms of numbers, the total population of Jianyu is less than the population of a province in the Ming Kingdom. In terms of cultural level, the slave chieftains of Jianyu and the horses could not catch up with the bachelors of the Ming Kingdom. Their so-called familiarity with "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is actually not reading at all, but listening to the book.

It's just such a group of people who have repeatedly defeated the Ming Kingdom, which is really sad.

"Xiao Lu!"

Zhang Zhun suddenly shouted.

"Here!"

Lu Yidian outside the door hurriedly came in.

"Go and call Zhang Haibin."

Zhang Zhun said.

Lu Yidian agreed.

The structure of the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion of the Tiger Ben Army is a bit like a six-pointed star on a military flag. The five departments under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Governor's Office, the Ministry of Military Affairs, the Ministry of Government, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Public Works are all on duty here. Each corner has a section, and for the time being there is another corner that is empty. Each corner of the six-pointed star actually occupies a large area. Anyway, Zhaojiatun has a place, and it is just constantly expanding to the north.

In the middle of the six-pointed star is Zhang Zhun's office. The distance from each department to Zhang Zhun's office is equal. This was also a requirement in the original design. This seems to be an indication of the attitude of not distinguishing between the other. No matter which department people are, it is very convenient and fast to go to Zhang Zhun to report and ask for instructions.

In this six-pointed star building, what Zhang Zhun pays the most attention to is actually the Ministry of Military Affairs. After all, power comes out of the barrel of a gun, and at all times, the army must be firmly grasped in hand. Therefore, the location of the military department is arranged in the uppermost corner of the six-pointed star, that is, the northernmost building.

The structure of the military affairs department of the Tiger Ben Army is still relatively large, including the General Staff Department, the Equipment Department, the Logistics Department, the Wounded and Retired Department, and the Maoyan Department. Each division has its own duty room. In addition to the various divisions, there are also specially coordinated offices of the Military Commission. Among them, the most core department is, of course, the General Staff.

According to the knowledge of later generations, Zhang Zhuggar first put up the shelves of the staff headquarters, and then slowly perfected them. At all times, the General Staff has special personnel on duty. After the establishment of the General Staff, Zhang Zhun enriched the personnel structure of the General Staff, and in addition to Ye Longxin and Yang Qiufeng, a staff officer Gong Bing was also added. At the same time, there are more than a dozen other quick-hearted trainee staff officers.

Mo Ru is actually a good staff officer, he knows how to count, and he also understands some basic geometric principles, if he goes to the staff department, as long as he is mentioned by Zhang Zhun, he is definitely an expert in surveying and mapping. It's a pity that Mo Ru doesn't like to be a staff officer, well, or rather, he doesn't want to come to the staff department as a pure staff officer now. He prefers to stay inside the artillery.

The General Staff itself has a special communications association, with a total establishment of 300 people, which is mainly used to send orders. This makes it convenient for Zhang Zhun to give instructions at any time. As soon as the order reaches the General Staff, the General Staff will quickly send someone to convey it. In this way, the snipers around Zhang Zhun do not need to perform frequent communication tasks.

Of course, when encountering special things, Zhang Zhun will also call the people around him to come out. In fact, since horses and riders are mainly used on the battlefield, there are currently less than 30 people in the General Staff Communications Association. However, the current Tiger Ben Army Staff does not have much order to be conveyed, and it can meet the needs for the time being.

At the time of the establishment of the General Staff, Zhang Haibin happened to arrive. The purpose of his arrival was to report on the construction of Weihaiwei Port, as well as a summary of the Navy's battles in the previous stage, and to report on the Navy's main operational plans for the next stage.

The construction of Weihaiwei has already had a rough prototype. The number of berths at the wharf has been increased to fifteen one after another, which can basically accommodate the current Tiger Ben Army warships to dock in turns. Other facilities are under active construction. The Tiger Ben Army warships departing from Weihai Weijun Port have been able to effectively control the exit of Bohai Bay. At the same time, warships began to secretly sail eastward to test the movements of the Korean sailors.

At present, the connection between Liaodong and Dengzhou City has been completely severed. The warships of the Tiger Ben Navy began to harass the coast of Liaodong and put pressure on the Tartars of Liaodong. It is impossible for the Tartars and rebels in Dengzhou City to obtain any supplies. However, at the beginning, Dongjiang Town and the governor of Denglai stored a large amount of grain here, so the food of the Tartars was safe for the time being.

After Dolgon and Duoduo came to Dengzhou City, they quickly drove all the residents to Liaodong, and now it seems that they are really crooked. Otherwise, there are so many people here, so much food is not enough to consume, only people eat people. Once the situation of cannibalism is a human being, the Tartar will not last long anyway. At the same time, in order to save these people, the Tiger Ben Army had no choice but to launch a strong attack.

"My lord, I'm here!"

Zhang Haibin soon appeared and said loudly.

"Good work."

Zhang Zhun nodded and let him in.

"We are on a boat, and it is not very hard to delay a little longer on the road."

Zhang Haibin said with a smile.

This is true, the Navy does have such convenience. From Weihai Weijun Port to Fushan City, if you ride a horse, you will have to bump for at least two days, and your butt can be bumpy and bloom. The last time we had a meeting, Yang Zixuan and Yang Zhiyuan were choked enough. However, taking a boat is different. The boat ride is not very fast, but it is very comfortable. Getting on the boat in Weihaiwei and getting off the boat in Fushan City is as simple as that.

"I came to you to arrange a few jobs for your navy."

Zhang Zhun said straight to the point.

"The first is to intensify the attack on the coast of Liaodong and contain as many Tartar troops as possible. I suggest that the focus of your attack should be on the coast of Fuzhou Wei and Gaizhou Wei, so as to create a false impression for the Tartars that we should cooperate with the official army to recover Fuzhou Wei and Gaizhou Wei together. The official army did have such a plan back then, and I believe that the Tartars would not dare to take it lightly. ”