The next day, the deeds of the fleet returning from overseas spread throughout Bianliang.

Kaifeng Mansion was a sensation.

After learning that there was such a rich place thousands of miles away, many people inquired about the whereabouts.

Throughout the streets and alleys, after tea and dinner, the biggest news is to talk about this matter.

A few days later, Zhao Jun took his wife and children and went to Cao's Mansion in person.

"Uncle!"

At the gate of Cao's mansion, facing Cao Cong who came to greet him, Zhao Jun and Cao Miaoxin both saluted.

"It's all a family, don't be like this."

Cao Cong had already received Cao Xiu's notice, and he had already greeted them at the door and warmly beckoned them in.

Now one of the two nieces is married to the emperor and the other is married to the prefect, and the first and second figures in the Great Song Dynasty are the sons-in-law of the Cao family, and the Cao family can be described as glorious.

As the current head of the Cao family, Cao Cong naturally carefully maintained the dignity of the Cao family, and did not dare to slack off in the slightest.

Zhao Jun smiled and followed Cao Cong in.

After marrying Cao Miaoxin, he actually came to Cao's Mansion not a small number of times, and he had to walk around every New Year's holiday, so as not to make his wife sad.

The mansion of Cao Mansion is very large, mainly because several of Cao Cong's brothers died early, and more than 20 nephews and nieces are young, so he has been responsible for taking care of the offspring.

It will not move out until the nephews and nieces reach adulthood, anyway, the Cao family has a big business, and it is not that they can't afford to support it.

I entered Cao's Mansion and didn't go to the main hall.

The main hall is a place to talk about things, and in order to show the closeness of the family, it is natural to go to the backyard.

Now in addition to Cao Cong's wife, only the youngest son Cao Li still lives in the Cao Mansion, and the rest of the Cao family's heirs are basically independent.

The huge Cao Mansion, although there are many servants, is a little empty, except for the New Year's holidays, it is not lively on weekdays.

They had a meal first, and after a few sips of tea, Mrs. Cao saw that Zhao Jun was going to talk to Cao Cong about business, so she took Cao Miaoxin, Cao Li and one-year-old Zhao Tan to the next room to chat.

At this time, there were only Zhao Jun and Cao Cong in the house.

Cao Cong only took a sip of tea at this time, looked at Zhao Jun and smiled: "Hanlong, you have something to tell me." ”

"Hmm."

Zhao Jun nodded: "This matter is very important, so we must communicate with my uncle first." ”

"You say."

Cao Cong gestured.

"You know the three redundant things, and the biggest problem is redundancy."

Zhao Jun paid attention to Cao Cong's face, and sure enough, when he saw this sentence come out, Cao Cong's face stiffened slightly.

But he didn't say anything, but waited for the rest of the story.

Seeing this, Zhao Jun continued: "The problem of redundant troops must be solved, and this is a national policy that cannot be missed. Taking advantage of the complete cessation of the war with the Liao State of Western Xia, the Great Song Dynasty wanted to carry out large-scale disarmament, eliminate the old and weak, and leave only the elite soldiers. ”

"This is for the sake of the court, naturally it should be done, it's just"

Cao Cong swallowed: "Shouldn't it be slowed down, although the war between Western Xia and Liao is stagnant now, if we choose to eliminate the sergeants, I am afraid they will attack again." ”

"I know what my uncle is worried about."

Zhao Jun said with a smile: "Our family doesn't need to talk to each other, the Cao family is actually supported by this industry now, am I right?" ”

Cao Cong stopped talking.

The Cao family is considered to be quite average, but even so, by supplying weapons and equipment, eating empty salaries, and then letting the subordinate troops farm and do business for them, they will have an income of hundreds of thousands of yuan every year.

Otherwise, how can this big family be raised?

Once you get used to this luxurious life, it is naturally difficult to come down again.

Zhao Jun continued: "Of course, the imperial court will not sit idly by and ignore this matter, now this year is an era of rapid change, the concept should look forward, not just guard this acre and three points of land, I will tell my uncle." ”

"Well, I'm listening."

Cao Cong responded.

"First of all, the reduction of the old and weak and the soldiers who can't fight, the imperial court estimates that it will be hundreds of thousands, this 1.2 million people, it is best to reduce it to about 800,000, although I think 600,000 is enough, but there must be a certain amount of local stay."

Zhao Jun said: "Uncle also knows that the country is not peaceful now, and there are many ethnic minorities in the area who do not obey the king. Well, we call it barbarians, and the imperial court needs to rely on the Prison Mansion to maintain its rule, but these people often rebel, so it is still necessary to leave a certain number of van troops. ”

Cao Cong's brows furrowed, and a look of sadness appeared in his eyes, how can it be good to lay off so many people?

"The court can't all of the people who have been laid off."

Zhao Jun explained: "But it's a waste of manpower to let them go, so I just thought about raising them in another name." Jiangmen Xungui set up several private firms, and the imperial court will also take shares, and the imperial court will resettle the old and weak who have been dismissed back to their hometowns and distribute their fields, and the young and strong commercial houses that have been abolished can be recruited. ”

"What's the use of this firm?"

Cao Cong asked.

"It's very simple, it takes people to build steel mills, roads, post stations, canals, and rivers."

Zhao Jun said: "The imperial court will fund the construction on a large scale, and the money will be handed over to the soldiers, and you will distribute it again, which will save the soldiers from having nothing to do in the camp every day." Other than that, have you heard about Chen Haizhong and them? ”

"Well, all the beams are spreading."

Cao Cong nodded.

"This trip to the imperial court contributed more than 1 million yuan, but they brought back more than 5 million yuan worth of gold and silver, as well as more than 2 million yuan of copper and iron, and the profit can be said to be more than seven times."

Zhao Jun said with a smile: "The most important thing for this trading house is to form a fleet, which will be jointly funded by the imperial court and you, and sail overseas. Compared to you living on this money every year, it is better to make a lot of money, what does my uncle think? ”

"Is there really such a huge profit?"

Cao Cong was surprised.

"That's natural, with the relationship between the Cao family and His Majesty and me, how can I deceive my uncle?"

Zhao Jun replied confidently.

Cao Cong thought for a while, nodded slightly, and said, "If that's the case, I'm in favor of this matter." ”

"This is great, the official family and I hope everyone can know that the redundant army has burdened the imperial court's treasury too much, and the imperial court has no choice, but the imperial court will not treat everyone badly."

Zhao Jun said: "Maybe it will be a little more difficult to start at the beginning, but once you get on the right track, the situation will be much better, and I hope that my uncle and all the nobles can take care of it." ”

"Hmm."

Cao Cong responded.

Then Zhao Jun chatted with him about some other things.

For example, he suggested that Cao Shi renovate the existing weapons manufacturing workshop, connect with the Wu'an Iron and Steel Plant, and change the production mode from military to civilian.

Now agricultural tools are scarce all over the country in the Great Song Dynasty, and after the steel production is increased, expanding the production of agricultural tools can also improve productivity.

The second is the project that can be contracted by the local government, such as building bridges and paving roads, digging ditches and dams.

Although this may cause collusion between officials and businessmen.

The problem is that there are no contractors in Da Song at present, and the commercial bank will be opened first, which can be regarded as half a state-owned enterprise, and there should be no problem if you strictly pay attention to the quality.

There are also some other ways to make money, and they are all explained one by one, and after chatting for more than an hour, Zhao Jun can be regarded as saying goodbye and leaving.

On the way back, Zhao Tan still had to play with his cousin, Cao Miaoxin slapped him to be honest, turned his head and saw that her husband's face was not very good-looking, and wondered: "Husband, what's wrong?" ”

"You are from a general's background, and you know the problem of redundant troops."

Zhao Jun said calmly: "My uncle and I are talking about this matter, hoping that Jiangmen can get out of the army and transfer to other industries. ”

"Uncle didn't agree?"

"Promised."

"Then why?"

"But I don't think he's very happy."

"I'm not happy about me."

"The imperial court did not block the road, and also gave them the opportunity to engage in other industries, and they will only earn more than in the army."

"Ha, husband, that's what you don't understand."

Cao Miaoxin smiled.

"Oh?"

Zhao Jun was puzzled: "I don't understand anything." ”

"They get a lot of money every year, and now let them engage in other ways, who will agree?"

Cao Miaoxin shook his head and said: "People are greedy, for the vast majority of people, who will throw away the old way before the new way is sure to make money?" What's more, even if the new door does make money, why can't the two doors make money together? ”

In an instant, Zhao Jun was woken up.

He immediately understood that it would not be easy to fool the nobles of the generals.

"And what do you mean?"

Zhao Jun's mind spun fast and said, "Can you create a model?" ”

"I didn't think about it that much, but I thought that if they saw that the new way was really profitable, maybe they would say yes."

Cao Miaoxin replied.

"Hmm."

Zhao Jun nodded slightly and said, "The Cao family is this typical. ”

There is no more suitable than the Cao family.

The carriage left slowly, and Zhao Jun thought that as long as the Cao family was a typical model, and the nobles of the generals could see the profits, everything would be fine and the problem of redundancy would be solved peacefully.

However, in Cao's mansion, after Zhao Jun left, Cao Cong's face has not been very good-looking.

Mrs. Li, the stepwife who accompanied him to send Zhao Jun and Cao Miaoxin out, turned her head and saw that he was not in a good mental state, so she wondered: "Husband, what's wrong?" ”

"Alas, it's been an eventful time."

Cao Cong shook his head.

"What is it that makes my husband so worried?"

Mrs. Li was puzzled.

"The imperial court wants to remove the disadvantages of the three redundancies, among which the redundancy of the army is related to my generals."

Cao Cong replied.

Mrs. Li is naturally not from a small family, but the great-granddaughter of Li Fang, the prime minister in the early Northern Song Dynasty.

In the Song Dynasty, civil officials, nobles, generals, and clans were deeply entangled, and they married each other, which had long arranged a large net in the court.

And they still have a lot of shade places, Fan Zhongyan was born in an ordinary family, not a powerful person in the early Song Dynasty, and in the face of the new Qingli policy in history, he was naturally constrained everywhere.

At this moment, Mrs. Li heard that the imperial court was going to take action against the redundant army, and she also frowned and said, "My son-in-law came over today, is that what I mean about this matter?" ”

"Hmm."

Cao Cong walked slowly to the backyard with his hands behind his back.

The courtyard was large, and there were some servants around who were cleaning or pruning the flowers, and he lowered his voice and said, "The Constitutional Yuan intends to check the military roster and cut down the redundant army. ”

"Isn't that a way to live?"

Mrs. Li was unhappy all of a sudden, and complained: "The official family and the prefect are still the Cao family's son-in-law, how can they be like this to us? ”

"Give us a way to live, you know that yesterday's ocean-going fleet came back."

"I know."

"They went to more than 50 ships, more than 6,000 people, spent about 1 million guan, and brought back about 7 million guan worth of gold, silver and bronze."

"So much?"

"Well, the imperial court means that let's also form a fleet and go overseas."

Cao Cong walked with his head down, making it difficult to see his face.

Mrs. Li naturally didn't notice that Cao Cong didn't have any joy on her face, and said happily: "If that's the case, then it's great, isn't it a great thing?" ”

"It's wrong, it's a bad thing."

Cao Cong shook his head: "Let's not talk about overseas dangers, there is a possibility of overturning, even if it goes well, it is not as stable as the army, not to mention."

"What's more?"

"What's more, many things can't stand up to investigation, and I'm afraid that many people don't want to."

"What the hell is so troublesome?"

Mrs. Li wondered.

Naturally, their Cao clan also accounted for a lot of empty salaries, and they also supplied weapons and equipment.

But it's good to have 200,000 in a year.

After all, the share is so large, dozens of families will divide the door together, it is definitely impossible for every family to be tens of millions, and the Great Song Dynasty's finances will not be enough to support them in a year.

So if they can also go to sea, even if it is five years, they will return seven million and seven times the profit, why can't they do it?

Isn't that stronger than it is now?

However, Cao Cong turned his head to look at him and said meaningfully: "Many things are difficult to say. ”

"What are you saying, what else is hidden between husband and wife?"

Mrs. Li was a little dissatisfied.

Cao Cong had no choice but to say: "There are more vacancies than imagined, the imperial court wants to cut 800,000 people, and they expect that 300,000 or 400,000 people will be eliminated, but in fact, it would be good to have 200,000." ”

“.”

Although Mrs. Li had heard of the chaos in Jiangmen, she didn't expect it to be so chaotic.

She had no choice but to say: "If this is the case, as long as everyone sincerely admits their mistakes to the officials, the officials will surely forgive." ”

"More than that."

Cao Cong said helplessly: "Many ordnance is either shoddy, or even not at all, and a large amount of ordnance expenditure has to be falsely reported every year." ”

"This"

Mrs. Li opened her mouth, not knowing what to say.

No wonder the imperial court gave them such big conditions, and Cao Cong was very worried.

Once the imperial court began to act against the redundant army, it was inevitable to find out the situation.

In the past, the doors covered each other, and the supervision of the imperial court was not in place, and almost no one checked, so they were left alone.

I didn't expect to fish the door too hard inside.

This is the new type of firearms, grenades and cannons developed by the Great Song Dynasty a few years ago, otherwise, if you encounter the Western Thieves and the Liao Army, in terms of this weaponry and army quality, wouldn't it be a sure defeat?

"And if the official family and Hanlong know about these things, maybe they will grit their teeth and let them go for the sake of the victory of the Northwest Army and the Hebei Army."

Cao Cong said lightly: "But do you know that there are many people who use to resell warehouses and ordnance to Western Xia and Liao, and sell copper, iron, alum and other items to the enemy. And relying on the hand guards, bullying and dominating the market, acting recklessly, and even beating people to death and robbing strong women? ”

In an instant, Mrs. Li understood why her husband looked so bad.

It's not that the conditions offered by the imperial court are not good.

It's that the generals have done too many bad things before, and once they are found out, with Zhao Jun's eyes not being able to rub the sand, I'm afraid that many of the generals will be slaughtered.

She hurriedly asked, "Then is there anyone in the Cao family who is involved?" ”

"Naturally, there is."

Cao Cong raised his head and looked at the sky, and said bitterly: "What an eventful autumn!" ”

As he spoke, his face became even more worried, and his face was already full of sadness.

(End of chapter)