Zhou Shangshu really didn't want to get involved in this troublesome matter in the north. It is true that the situation in the north is a big deal, but if you really want to talk about people's livelihood, river workers, government officials, taxation, etc., which one is a small matter?

In the entire Great Zhou Dynasty, there were simply too many places where silver was needed, and Zhou Shangshu felt that it would be hellish if the household department could watch the military department reach out to the treasury! Whoever is willing to go out for the sake of the north to tear up with Lin Xiang and Hubu will go, anyway, he doesn't want to be this wicked person. Besides, Li Xiang, who is in charge of the military department, has not yet spoken, and he, the secretary of the military department, is in a hurry to jump.

That's right, it's been almost two months since An Guogong and Mu Jingluo's recital was handed over, and Li Xiang, who is in charge of the military department, still doesn't have a clear attitude.

However, Prime Minister Lin had a very clear attitude and clearly opposed every suggestion mentioned by An Guogong in the recital. The reason for the household department is simple and crude, that is, there is no money.

To say that Lin Xiang is a person, although he is stubborn and takes authority very seriously, he has absolutely no problem with his ability to do things. On the third day after An Guogong's recital was delivered, Lin Xiang personally took Sun Shangshu of the household department and calculated a detailed account for the emperor in front of the Manchu Dynasty's civil and military affairs.

First, if the city defense of the thirteen northern states is to be repaired, how long will it take, how much will it cost to the people's materials, how much will it cost to repair the materials, labor costs, transportation and wear and tear, maintenance and repair after repair, how much silver will be needed in total, and how much maintenance expenses will be added every year in the future.

Second, if you want to increase the number of troops, the cost of conscription, the initial investment in barracks, military supplies, weapons, training, and so on for new recruits to enter the barracks, as well as the amount of additional military expenses every year.

Third, if we want to expand the scope of the border defense line and expand the number of cavalry and scouts, how much training is needed, how many horses are needed, and how much additional expenses are brought about by raising more war horses.

Fourth, since the beginning of autumn, how much has been the loss caused by small-scale border friction in the north, how much has the ordnance and pension been lost, and how much is needed to replenish the weapons entering the north every year, and how much military uniforms, chariots, grain and grass, and transportation are needed to replenish the northern border.

Fifth, in recent years, there have been several major battles in the north, including the war loss of the Shuozhou Campaign. And so on and so forth......

The accounts were very detailed, and Lin Xiang, who was nearly seventy years old, took Sun Shangshu to report these detailed accounts to the emperor one by one, and also to the civil and military officials in the court, and it took half an hour to explain these accounts.

I have to say. Don't look at Lin Xiang's age, his health is not good, but his brain is clear and good. The number and calculation came as soon as they opened their mouths, and they were never wrong, and every stroke was justified and well-founded, which made many young courtiers who were listening to it feel ashamed.

Lin Xiang finished calculating the accounts in the north, and began to report the detailed accounts of the treasury in recent years in front of the emperor and the civil and military officials, which year, how much taxes, how much rice and grain were put into the warehouse, how much taxes and silver were put into the warehouse, how much was spent, and where were they spent. The strokes are careful and clear.

It's all clear, Lin Xiang only asked one sentence, can the Great Zhou Dynasty now bear the requirements put forward by An Guogong.

When this sentence was asked, the civil and military officials were silent, and the emperor did not speak for a while.

According to Lin Xiang's detailed accounts, the imperial court needed a minimum of about 35 taels of silver per year to raise an ordinary infantryman, which included all the expenses required for soldiers' salaries, training, rice rations, military uniforms, camps, ordnance and so on.

However, this minimum cost is only in the war-free areas of Gyeonggi and Jiangnan, and the government soldiers almost only need to stand guard and train, so 35 taels can afford to raise an ordinary infantryman.

And in the northern border, where there are frequent wars, to raise an infantry, it takes at least sixty taels of silver a year.

However, among the sergeants, the cheapest is the infantry. The cost of a cavalry was at least three times that of an infantryman, and the price of a high-quality military horse alone was more than a hundred taels.

Outside the northern border is the territory of the Rong Di people, the nomadic tribe is good at cavalry and archery, the northern defenders have been fighting with Rong Di for a long time, obviously the infantry is not very useful, so in the north, the infantry is mostly used to defend the city, large-scale battles, more or rely on the combat effectiveness of the cavalry.

This time, An Guogong proposed to increase the troops, 50,000 cavalry, and at least 50,000 high-grade war horses, which is 5 million silver, a one-time expenditure. Don't mention the need to raise these cavalrymen, the annual increase in military spending will be at least nine million taels.

Not to mention the additional costs of repairing the city defenses, expanding the border defenses, and expanding the scout camps.

According to Lin Xiang's detailed account, if it is all according to what An Guogong said, the household department will have to take out 50 million taels of silver in one go and immediately fill it in the northern border, and then the annual increase in military spending will be about 13 million taels.

An extra burden of thirteen million taels a year! Now the annual military expenditure of the Great Zhou Dynasty is about 50 million taels, and if this one is added, it will be 63 million military expenditures, which is really to hollow out the family of the Great Zhou!

You must know that last year's wind and rain were good, and the treasury was only 80 million taels of silver, and 50 million military expenses were already a heavy burden on the household department, and now another 13 million or more than 60 million yuan will be paid to the military department.

Could it be that it has become the northern border, and the economy and people's livelihood are disregarded, and the whole country has to live on food? In case of a disaster year, the imperial court must leave some money for disaster relief, right? The war in the north is a major event, and so is the food and clothing of the common people.

"There is a fixed number of populations, and there are also a number of fields," Lin Xiang's tone was mild and restrained, "The emperor himself calculates, how much grain our country can produce every year, this is a number, whether you can afford to raise these troops, needless to say, the emperor must be psychologically clear." ”

The emperor is indeed very clear, he knows that if he insists on increasing the army, the big hat of reckless military force will probably be buckled on his head.

But if the north is left alone...... He thought of An Guogong's recital, and his brows were almost knotted. An Guogong and Mu Jingluo's worries are not unreasonable, if the nineteen departments of Rong Di are unified, then the war between Da Zhou and Rong Di will not be on the scale it is now, and if you don't prepare early, I'm afraid it will be difficult to clean up.

"The emperor might as well send an envoy to the north first," Lin Xiang glanced at Li Xiang, who was speechless, and made a suggestion, "Those small tribes have been forced to live by a few big tribes, and they may be willing to submit to my Great Zhou." ”

Li Xiang knew what Lin Xiang meant. The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War are under his control, and Lin Xiang is pushing the matter of the northern border back into his hands and letting him find a way to solve it.

If it can really be resolved through negotiation with the envoy, it is Lin Xiang's idea, and the credit is naturally Lin Xiang's. If it can't be solved, then the fault is naturally his.

However, the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites are in the hands of Li Xiang, and he can't get out of it anyway. Therefore, he could only secretly scold Lin Xiang in his heart for being an old fox, and promised that he would come out with a charter after discussing with the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War.

。