Yongyang Town, General Military Mansion.

Fei Chun hurriedly walked in and threw his hat on the table: "There are a group of homeless people back, clamoring to divide the land." ”

"This is a good thing," Zhao Han said happily, "The previous war was too fierce, and the common people were scared away by the officers and soldiers." Don't look at the fact that we have half a county, there are less than 50,000 people in Dingkou, so we have to call some more back. ”

"Food, not enough food!"

Fei Chun's position is to supervise the money and grain, and he said depressedly: "After the Xiao family donated the land, many landlords followed suit. Their land was divided, but their money and food were not taken. The homeless people who came from Fucheng and the homeless people who came back from Anfu and Taihe had no food in their hands, and even the seeds had to be borrowed from the government. The local tenants don't have much to store, and it's going to be the season of scarcity! ”

The more Fei Chun spoke, the more anxious he became: "You still have to run a lot of schools and provide lunch for schoolchildren." In addition to Wuxing Town, the mayors and household section chiefs of various towns all came to me to ask for food. Where do I get food out? ”

"Haha," Zhao Han got up and poured tea for Fei Chun, and said with a smile, "Don't be impatient, don't be in a hurry." ”

Fei Chun took a sip of hot tea, moistened his throat and said, "The school has to stop, even if it really wants to be done, it must wait for the summer grain to be collected." ”

"Anything can be stopped, but the school can't be stopped." Zhao Han said.

It really doesn't take much money to run a school, and it is all children between the ages of 7 and 12, which can barely be regarded as four years of compulsory education.

Today, there are only more than 40,000 people (over 12 years old) under Zhao Han's rule, and there are only more than 3,000 schoolchildren aged 7-12. It only consumes 200 stone a month.

Moreover, the teaching content is mainly literate, and the requirements for teachers are also very low, which is nothing more than a large-scale popularization of Mongolian learning.

Four or five teachers can teach a town.

The pen and ink of the book are not consumed much, and the white Jin soil is used as chalk to write and teach on the black wooden board. Students have money to bring their own pen and ink, and even study at home, so they can't look down on public schools at all. In families with no money, parents use their hair to make brushes, and students dip their hands in water to practice calligraphy on wooden boards.

As long as you have the heart, there are always more ways than difficulties!

The real food consumption is a large number of homeless, homeless and tenants, who have to rely on Zhao Han to borrow grain to survive.

Fei Chun held the teacup to warm his hands, his mood gradually calmed down, and he said: "There is another way, that is, to collect grain from the landlord!" ”

Zhao Han asked, "How long can our grain storage last?" ”

"Before, I was very optimistic that I could last until the summer grain harvest," Fei Chun said, "but more and more people are returning to their hometowns, and if this trend continues, there will be a food shortage in March, and at most it will last until April." ”

Zhao Han thought carefully for a moment and said, "Then borrow grain from the landlord." ”

"Borrowed food? Direct requisition of food is! Fei Chun is responsible for supervising the money and grain, he doesn't want to have grain in the future, and he has to return the grain to the landlord.

"You listen to me," Zhao Han said with a serious expression, "Since these landlords are obedient and honestly hand over the land, we can't be untrustworthy." A mouthful of spit and a nail, whatever is said, these landlords will be stable, so that there will be no worries about the future. ”

Fei Chun asked, "Do you really want to borrow grain?" ”

Zhao Han nodded and said, "Call Mr. Pang and them another day, and let's set up a grain store." ”

"What is the grain line?" Fei Chun wondered.

Zhao Han explained: "It's just that we build a warehouse and store the grain. Anyone can deposit grain in it and pay them monthly interest, as well as the peasants who borrowed it. But it must be low-interest, not usury! ”

Fei Chun tried to understand: "For example, if I am a landlord, I deposit my grain in the grain store, and I can take it out in a few months, and I can still get the interest given by the grain bank?" ”

"yes, that's it." Zhao Han said.

"Alas, my brother," Fei Chun's head ached, "Storing food is consumed, rats will come to gnaw, rice worms will also gnaw, and it may also be damp and moldy." Deposit grain and get interest? I don't charge storage fees, all for face! It's a loss-making deal! ”

Zhao Han said with a smile: "Now it's about saving grain and borrowing grain, and you can save money and borrow money in the future." ”

"Money?" Fei Chun's eyes lit up.

Zhao Han nodded: "It can also be called a bank." ”

The Ming Dynasty money bank, originated from the orthodox period, mainly engaged in the exchange of silver, official money, and private money.

During the Jiajing period, private money was rampant, the imperial court banned the exchange of copper coins, and the country's money banks closed down on a large scale.

In the early years of Wanli, the existence of Qian Zhuang was allowed again. Even, the money banks all over the country have actually become the issuance terminal of official money - the imperial court mints copper coins, and the money banks buy money with silver to help the imperial court issue new money to the market.

By the time of Chongzhen, Qianzhuang was very similar to the banks of later generations.

Large money banks have appeared in remote exchange business, and bills of exchange even have credit circulation functions (similar to checks).

In the vast rural areas, there are countless money exchange shops or money and rice shops, and silver, copper coins, and grain can be effectively exchanged.

Zhao Han said: "Qian Mi Shop, it can't be in the hands of the landlord, we have to take the opportunity to take it." ”

"There are not enough people!" Fei Chun said bitterly.

This is a technical job, silver and copper coins have good and bad quality, and they must be checked by senior masters.

Zhao Han said with a smile: "So open a grain store first, and then run a money bank when it becomes bigger." You take people to borrow grain from house to house, write down clearly how much grain you borrow, and issue bills to these landlords, promising that after the summer grain is harvested, you can return it with interest. In the future, when peasants borrow grain, they will all borrow it from grain stores. There are two pressing tasks at the moment, one is to overcome the food shortage, and the other is to establish credit. ”

Fei Chun's head was suddenly very big, and he just wanted to return to Lead Mountain immediately and be a slave of the Fei family honestly.

He doesn't have many literate people under his hands, and there is a shortage of warehouses to store grain, so why don't you have to go to the landlord to borrow grain?

"Zongzhen, Mr. Li asks to see you!"

"Please!"

Zhao Han was suddenly overjoyed, he had communicated with Pang Chunlai and knew how powerful Li Banghua was.

personally went out to welcome Li Banghua in, Zhao Han poured tea for the old gentleman again, and asked, "Mr. Meng Dian is homesick?" ”

Li Banghua was too lazy to go around the bend and asked directly; "When are you going to attack the state capital?"

"Within two or three years." Zhao Han said.

Li Banghua asked again: "After occupying Jiangxi, which province are you going to attack?" ”

Zhao Han replied: "Fujian and Guangdong." ”

"Not going to fight Nanjing?" Li Banghua's expression was a little playful.

Zhao Han said with a smile: "What am I doing in Nanjing? Even if he can beat it, he will become the number one thief in the world. ”

Li Banghua said: "If you can monopolize Jiangxi, you will already be the number one thief in the world." ”

"It's different," Zhao Han argued, "as long as I don't attack Nanjing, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, or even Huguang, the primary target of the imperial court will definitely be those thieves in the northwest." If Emperor Chongzhen dares to mobilize a large army to conquer Jiangxi, he can't defeat it within half a year, and the thieves and Tartars will be able to break through the Beijing Division! ”

Li Banghua agrees with this statement very much.

Jiangxi is too far away from Beijing, and Liukou and Tatar are too close. As long as Chongzhen's mind is still sober, he has to put Jiangxi aside first.

Li Banghua asked again: "What about after occupying Fujian and Guangdong?" ”

Zhao Han replied: "Consolidate the territory of the three provinces, open up sea trade, and practice firearms." If you have time, you will also accept Guangxi. ”

Li Banghua suddenly got up and walked around the room, as if he was thinking about something, and seemed to be struggling with something.

After pacing back and forth for a long time, Li Banghua asked, "Do you think the imperial court can exterminate the rogues?" ”

Zhao Han replied: "Liukou is like a leek, cutting a stubble and growing a stubble. Shanxi and Shaanxi have been plagued by disasters for many years, and the imperial court is still collecting taxes, where can the peasants survive? Unless all the peasants in the two provinces are killed, the rogues will never be wiped out. ”

In fact, some situations in the north are more serious than Zhao Han imagined!

Before Chongzhen ascended the throne, the north was already rotten.

In the seventh year of the Apocalypse, Wu Yingji recorded what he saw and heard, and the general content is as follows-

Out of Zhenyang County, Henan, I walked for 40 miles in a row, and all the acres of fields along the way were abandoned, and the fields were full of weeds.

Wu Yingji asked the coachman: "How much land in this county has been abandoned like this?" ”

The coachman replied; "Nine times out of ten. Xixian is much better, and the abandoned land is only four or fifty percent. ”

When he came to the post station, Wu Yingji asked the post guard again: "Why don't the people of this county farm the land?" ”

The postman replied: "There are many horse farmers in this county, and the horse administration is strict. Those who serve cannot afford it, so they can only flee to other lands. The people are gone, the enslavement is still there, and the government implements the law of joint sitting. Ten households sit in a row, neighbors sit in a row, and relatives sit in a row. The rich paid for the service, the poor had to flee, and the whole county had almost fled. ”

Wu Yingji felt very strange: "Before you escaped, why didn't you sell the land?" ”

The postman replied: "Ma Zheng will be transferred to the landlord." No one dares to buy acres of land in this county, so they can only abandon it. ”

Then he talks about other harsh policies, and then on to local officials. From the prefect to the prefect, many of them are not from Jinshi, and most of them come to buy officials for tribute, and they are exploited immediately after taking office, otherwise it is difficult to recover the cost of buying officials.

A wealthy county has been abandoned by more than eighty percent of the land!

Not only could the tenants not survive, but the yeoman farmers and small landowners had to flee. And those big landlords did not dare to encroach on the land, and the grain harvest was not enough to bear the burden of horse political servitude.

Therefore, when the Northwest Liukou entered Henan, many Henan people also spontaneously revolted.

Not coerced, but spontaneous uprising!

The same is true in Shanxi.

After Shaanxi Liukou entered Shanxi, in just half a year, the number of local rebel troops in Shanxi far exceeded that of Shaanxi.

How could Li Banghua not know about this situation?

Many officials of the imperial court know about it!

Li Banghua took out a letter, handed it to Zhao Han and said, "You send someone to Jishuigu Village and give the letter to my father." ”

Zhao Han said happily: "It must be done!" ”

"Say, let me do something." Li Banghua went straight to the point.

"There happens to be a tricky matter," Zhao Han explained the food shortage and said, "Please ask Mr. to borrow grain from rich households." They don't trust me much for the time being, so I guess there should be no problem for the gentleman to get out of the horse. ”

Li Banghua smiled: "Smart people will believe it." If you don't want to return the grain, what are you borrowing? Just grab it. ”

In addition to borrowing grain from the landlord, Zhao Han also wanted to borrow grain from the government.

In Taihe and Anfu counties, there are rogues and homeless people, and officials and gentry are walking on thin ice.

Then let them raise money and food, and Zhao Han was responsible for taking the displaced people away - Zhao Han got the food and population, the displaced people could live and work in peace and contentment, and the government and gentry were no longer afraid.

Not a win-win, but a win-win, what a bargain!