Chapter 50: The Crusade (Part II)

It only took 350,000 yuan to exchange for the Mengyuan court to stand by. If this southern expedition is smooth, the country's hard work should be the first! "Huaiyang Governor's Mansion, Zhu Chongjiu put down the agreement reached between the enemy and us, and praised loudly.

"Victory is not martial, victory is not martial!" Shi Fengguo, the left deputy governor of the Government Council and the commander of the First Army, blushed and shook his head.

Dealing with a second ancestor like Xue Xue, he is simply handy. Of the 600,000 copper coins in the budget, only 50,000 yuan were spent on Xue Xue and other middlemen, and 350,000 yuan was set aside to pay for the wool goods in installments according to the actual amount to the port from next month, and the remaining 200,000 yuan became a complete surplus.

On Meng Yuan's side, if he wants to use force against the Huai'an army again, he has to weigh the benefits and disadvantages more carefully. 350,000 guan is not too large for a country. But in exchange for five million catties of wool, millions of acres of pasture, thousands of herdsmen and dozens of noble families were involved. No one dared to talk to Timur about the use of troops against Huaiyang, and even if he put it forward, it would be difficult to get a pass in the court without enough strength and reason.

"Governor Feng is too humble!"

"If Governor Feng thinks this trip is boring, he might as well change to Wei next time! lest in the future annals, I will only see all the kings, but I don't know anything about Wei! ”

"Haha, yes! Governor Feng is talented, it is more appropriate to deal with Xue Xue, or I wait! ”

Unlike Feng Guoyong himself, the heroes of the Huaiyang Grand Governor's Mansion stood up one after another, laughing and joking. Who wouldn't want to be sideways in a mission like this, which is not dangerous? Anyway, no matter what you do, the final outcome is to win. The difference is only in winning more and winning less, and how many tricks can be played in the process of winning.

What is called a soldier who surrenders without a fight, this is it! After several years of adaptation and tempering, no one in the chamber of the Huaiyang Governor's Mansion now feels that there is anything wrong with taking money to "ston" the opponent! The two countries exchanged troops, and they were originally doing everything. What's more, the lives of Huaiyang's disciples are precious, and they can use 350,000 to avoid two-front battles and avoid the bloodshed and sacrifice of thousands of soldiers, so why don't you do it?!

"I'm afraid that after the Pu family hears the news, they will also follow suit!" Sitting next to everyone and listening with a smile for a while, the governor of the Government Council, Su Mingzhe, cleared his throat and reminded in a low voice.

He knew that his ability was limited, so when the three houses were discussing together, he rarely spoke. Even if you occasionally insert a sentence or two, try to limit it to filling in the gaps for everyone, rather than being ingenious. In this way, his prestige has risen instead of falling. In his gestures, he has become more and more like the prime minister of the dynasty. Every time he gave advice, he was followed by many people.

This time, it's no exception. As soon as Su Mingzhe's words fell, Chen Ning, the left deputy governor of the Supervision Yuan, got up and echoed loudly: "What Su Changshi said is very true. Wei Chen heard that Xue Xue thought she had a plan, and she had already spread the results of the transaction between the two sides. And with the shrewdness of the big cannibal, as long as the lord's confession comes out, he will definitely find a way to pull the Yuan court into the water! ”

"Yes, to convince people with profit, and to weaken when they are exhausted. What the corrupt officials in the Mengyuan court wanted was nothing more than the dividend of wool, in case the Pu family also went out and doubled the purchase of wool. Isn't my Huai'an a waste of all my efforts?! Another governor, Wei Guan, thought about it and added cautiously.

"It's not necessarily necessary to give up all the previous efforts!" Hearing this, Chen Ji, the head of the Military Intelligence Department, slowly retracted his smile. "But you have to beware of the Mengyuan Imperial Court's side of sitting on the ground and raising the price. If I, Huaiyang and Quanzhou, take turns to improve their benefits, wouldn't they let them take advantage of them in vain? Lord, Weichen thinks that the Tartars have no faith, and we must not wait for it! ”

"Director Chen is too worried! The northern front has its own Fourth Army Corps! As soon as the words fell, Liu Ziyun, the right deputy governor of the Privy Council, immediately stood up with a smile and explained to everyone, "Last time, Li Shuangxi and Fu Youde went deep alone and were trapped in Shanxian County. Although it exposed many shortcomings of our army, it also tested the true strength of Chakhan Timur and Li Siqi. And Xue Xue and Taibuhua's Yuan Army, although they are stronger than Chahan Timur in terms of armament, but in terms of combat effectiveness, they are even worse than the former! If you really want to raise the army of the country to fight for life and death, the Mengyuan Imperial Court may not be able to take advantage of my Huaiyang. ”

"That's right, my Huai'an army is not afraid of any opponent." Chen Ji, the head of the Military Intelligence Department, was cautious by nature, nodded first, and then continued to remind in a low voice: "However, the truth is just as the lord said before, my Huai'an army does not have the strength to attack Huanglong now. In case the two sides lose out, I'm afraid that some insidious and despicable heroes will be cheapened for nothing! ”

"Uh-huh——!" Zhong Wenwu's faces suddenly darkened, and they all snorted coldly. The word "hero" is very appropriate for a hero with the same surname as his father-in-law. Although at present, because the chief manager cannot produce sufficient evidence, he has to temporarily target the spearhead of revenge at the Pu family in Quanzhou. But in fact, many clues faintly indicate that the real mastermind behind the scenes should be in Hezhou right now.

There are still more than two years left before the expiration of the Gaoyou Covenant, and the Grand Governor's Office cannot go back on its word, so it cannot take the initiative to challenge the "friendly forces" without sufficient evidence. But for Zhu Chongba, a "friendly army", he will no longer give any trust. He refused to fight bloodily in front of his head, and in the end he made a wedding dress for this person.

Weichen also thought that just luring him with profit was not enough to ensure that the Mengyuan Imperial Court would not move! The lord needs to add power! Zhang Song, the director of the Internal Affairs Department, pondered for a moment, slowly stood up, and supplemented Chen Ji's views.

Because of the negligence of the two of them last time, the director of his own family almost died in Huangquan. Although the Grand Governor's Office did not investigate the responsibility of the two later, he and Chen Ji learned enough lessons. Don't dare to be blindly confident and repeat the mistakes of the last time.

Affected by the two of them, the people in the council hall nodded their heads. Almost everyone is beginning to wonder about the actual effect of the agreement and is ready to consider how to start anew.

At this moment, Huang Lao, the director of the Industrial Bureau, who rarely spoke, suddenly stood up, first arched his hand at Zhu Chongjiu, and then stammered: "Everyone, my lords, listen, listen to Huang, Huang." Well, all of you are smart people. But, but sometimes, you guys think about it, don't you think about it, isn't it too much?! ”

He went around in circles for most of the time, but he never found the subject. was so anxious that Liu Ziyun, the right deputy governor of the Privy Council, frowned lightly and reminded in a low voice, "Lord Huang, what do you want to say?" Do you just want to tell everyone not to worry about the sky? ”

"Don't dare, don't dare!" When Huang Lao heard this, beads of sweat the size of beans immediately appeared on his forehead, "Huang, Xiaguan, no, no, Huang, I, no, no, no."

"Poof!" Several young officials led by Wei Guan and Chen Ning couldn't help it, lowered their heads, and covered their mouths with their hands.

Huang Laowei heard the snickering of others, and there were more beads of sweat on his forehead. He stomped his foot vigorously and added loudly: "Forget it, I'm welcome." Anyway, I'm polite and polite! Let me say it directly, the Pu family doesn't have the ability to compare with us. Even if he could get 350,000 copper coins, he wouldn't be able to eat so much wool. Not only him, looking at the world, I'm afraid that no one can eat so much wool in one go. Then you can also guarantee that you will not lose money, and turn it into blankets and fabrics and the clothes worn by the soldiers!! ”

That's really to the point. In an instant, there was silence in all directions. The crooked gaze that everyone looked at Huang Lao no longer contained any contempt, but was replaced by unprecedented respect.

Before the development of water-powered wool spinning machines and water-powered looms, wool was a waste material, except for the Mongols who occasionally used a small number of felt to make yurts, and most of the other ends up digging pits and burying them. But with the advent of water-powered wool spinning machines and looms, wool became the third most wonderful thing after silk and cotton. Although the woven wool is not as soft and absorbent as cotton, it is far better than linen and kudzu. And in terms of warmth, it is far better than silk, cotton, linen, and kudzu.

"Your Excellency only saw the military power and financial resources, but you neglected one of my Huaiyang's biggest dependences, that is, the invincible workshop in the world!" In an admiring gaze, Huang Lao was greatly encouraged. Raised his hand to wipe the oil and sweat on his face, and continued to replenish in a rough voice. "Looking at the world, where are there so many workshops in Huaiyang? Looking at the world, where are there so many spinning wheels, looms, so many businesses and shops in Huaiyang? The Pu family wants to fight with us for money, can he afford it? What did he do when he bought so much wool back and could he still pile it up in the warehouse and watch it die away? ”

Hearing this, everyone continued to nod slightly. Everyone's face showed a little pride.

After years of support from the Governor's Office, the current spinning and weaving capacity of the Huaiyang region is unparalleled in the world. Sensei said that a single Quanzhou can't be compared, that is, the textile power of all other cities on the land of China is combined, and it is also less than half of Huaiyang.

So everyone's previous worries are not justified at all. The Huaiyang firm spent 350,000 guan to buy wool, and in the blink of an eye, it could become 700,000 yuan, or even 1 million guan of wool or blankets to sell. On the Quanzhou side, spending 350,000 guan is a waste of 350,000 guan, but it is impossible to do it again.

was sighing with emotion, but seeing Huang Lao smile crookedly, he continued to add loudly, "Besides, businesses pay attention to the long-term when making money, and Mongolians are also people, and they also have to make money to support their families." If you want to make money, you have to know that there are certain things that you can't do again. They absolutely have no reason, because Quanzhou gave an extra 50,000 guan this time, and they will throw away the other 350,000 guan next year in vain. In addition, you might as well learn from the group of old sour people who had just been executed, and also find a way to start first, so that the reputation of the Pu family in Quanzhou will stink on the street first. In this way, whoever speaks for the Pu family in the capital city is the enemy of the whole world. Forgive him, don't dare to take the initiative to find death! ”