my brother-in-law is the prince

Chapter 358
Zhu Di looked at Zhang Anshi with a half-smile.

Zhang Anshi felt guilty, and said again: "Your Majesty, most of the young troops are recruited soldiers, do they have money?"

Zhang Anshi is really short of money now.

Now half of Zhili is a waste of time, many railways, and a large number of bridges have to be built. This is almost the largest construction project in the whole world.

Such a large-scale construction project can be said to be a waste of money. Even the Zhang family took advantage of this opportunity to make a large-scale investment, and they hardly have much money left.

However, Zhang Anshi still needs to face a problem, which is to continue to spend money.

Zhu Di said: "The young army has tens of thousands of people, how can ordinary soldiers spend it? It's just that the military officials handed over the silver. It's just such a thing, one must not be different, Zhang Qing... don't trap people .”

Zhang Anshi couldn't help being happy after hearing this.

The so-called military ministers are actually relatively simple in composition, and they are often the descendants of martial arts or Yin officials.

After the military officials, it is understandable that many descendants of the military officials will often join the army and serve as officers.

The situation of yin officials is more complicated. From the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, all civil officials above the seventh rank, as long as they serve as officials for a period of time and after the assessment period expires, they will all have a son, and their salary will be hereditary.

This relatively loose system of yin and yang in the early Ming Dynasty was gradually restricted later, and there were additional clauses: these yin and yang children had to first go to the Guozijian to study, and they had to pass a special examination before they could be appointed officials.Soon, the special examination regulations were abolished, but Yin officials were limited to the direct heirs of officials above the third rank.

These people do not need to take the imperial examination to become officials, but most of these official positions are casual, or relatively leisurely positions such as Taichang Temple and Shangbaosi, and some people become military positions or are selected into the Imperial Army.

After all, the difficulty of the imperial examination is too high, and for civil servants with outstanding merits, once their children and grandchildren fail the imperial examination, they basically become ordinary people. If they cannot shelter their children and grandchildren, I am afraid that not many people are willing to do their best.

It's just that in the eyes of ministers who are taking the imperial examinations, Yin officials are not considered serious official positions, but they just receive a salary and have a decent job.

Because of this, the general ministers, in order to let these sons and grandchildren who have no hope of imperial examinations have some talents in the future, they will find ways to stuff them into places with "prospects".

For example, Shangbaosi, or Taichang Temple, Guanglu Temple, etc. Of course, pro-military is also a good place.

Now His Majesty has set up a young army to act as the emperor's grandson's guard, and this... obviously made many people take advantage of the loophole.

This emperor's grandson is the real son of the future. If the children and grandchildren are filled into the young army and take up a military position, even if the emperor's grandson can't be entrusted with important tasks in the future, with the protection of the emperor's grandson in this life, he can live comfortably.

So Zhang Anshi almost didn't think about it, he knew what the military officers of this young army were.

At this time, his eyes lit up, and he couldn't help thinking: Zhan Ji knows me.

So Zhang Anshi was obedient, and felt a lot happier, so he bid farewell and went out immediately.

…………

East Palace.

At this time, Zhu Gaochi's face was very pale.

He said: "The most worrying thing in the past was your uncle An Shi. Now that An Shi has grown up, he is much more stable in his actions. I thought it would save me some worries. Who would have thought that you would be so ignorant?" .In the past, only the superiors gave favors to their subordinates. How can the superiors ask for their subordinates? Zhan Ji, how dare you do such a thing? Now there are complaints from all over the place..."

Zhu Gaochi's face showed a look of distress.

After all, Zhu Zhanji was still a child, standing in the corner, bowing his head in fright, not daring to make a sound.

Zhu Gaochi continued: "Father established a young army. The original intention is to select talents for you, which means to value you. But you treat them as tools to make money, and force them to buy land. What's the reason?"

Zhu Zhanji hesitated for a moment, but he mustered up his courage and said, "But...but... Grandpa Huang is not angry either."

"Bastard!" Zhu Gaochi was furious: "Your emperor can pamper you, so can I pamper you as a father?"

"I... I... I was wrong."

"How much land did you sell?"

"No... not much... more than [-] acres..."

"What is the price?"

"500 taels..."

Zhu Gaochi suddenly fainted.

"The land on the market is only priced at ten taels and twenty taels, you might as well grab it!"

"You can't grab it." Zhu Zhanji said: "Uncle said..."

Zhu Gaochi interrupted him angrily: "Don't mention your uncle, your uncle is ignorant, so don't you?"

Zhu Zhanji: "..."

Zhu Gaochi said solemnly: "Three thousand and seven hundred acres, 500 taels of silver, thanks to you for opening this mouth! Among the young army, there are only more than four hundred military officers, and you haven't lost any of them. Catch them and sell them by force."

Zhu Zhanji said pitifully: "They...they..."

Zhu Gaochi roared angrily: "You are teaching them to sell everything, and you are killing them!"

Zhu Zhanji said: "The poor buy two or three acres, and the rich buy thirty or forty acres..."

"Thirty or forty mu, do you know how much silver it is? It's tens of thousands of taels, and you want their lives!"

"But...you can borrow money..." Zhu Zhanji said: "When you buy land...you can go to the bank to borrow money, so...so..."

Zhu Gaochi was about to jump up all of a sudden: "It's okay for you to say..."

"This... this is what my uncle taught me..." Zhu Zhanji was tearful, with tears rolling in his eyes, looking extremely aggrieved.

But it was obvious that Zhu Gaochi was furious, and said: "You naughty son... you naughty son..."

At this moment, an eunuch outside said: "Your Majesty is here..."

Mrs. Zhang has already come in.

Zhu Zhanji was even more frightened, because in many cases, his mother and concubine were stricter than his father.

At this moment, Mrs. Zhang said with a sweet smile: "Your Highness, what's the matter?"

"Ask him what he did. How can I have such a son? This son is not like me."

Mrs. Zhang only glanced at Zhu Zhanji lightly, and said, "Your Highness, why don't you ask the whole story? The concubine probably knows something about it... In my opinion... Zhanji did nothing. wrong."

After hearing this, Zhu Gaochi was puzzled and said: "It's so absurd, but..."

Mrs. Zhang had already sat down and winked at the eunuchs who came along, and the eunuchs tiptoed to leave.

Mrs. Zhang said: "Not to mention, Zhanji did this for his own uncle, his own family... He was supposed to watch over and help each other."

"Hey...you don't know, if things go on like this, people will turn against each other..."

Zhang's eyes fell on the teacup on the table, she picked up the teacup and handed it to Zhu Gaochi, then said gently: "This is what I want to talk about. Your Highness, An Shi is now working hard in Zhili, for What is it? Isn’t it for my Ming Dynasty? In the end, isn’t it for His Highness and Zhanji? In the past, he ruled the Taiping Mansion, and his achievements are obvious to all. Yes, our Eastern Palace, can we do our best?"

After Zhu Gaochi heard this, he was at a loss for words. He held the teacup and subconsciously took a sip of tea. The warm tea in his belly seemed to calm down the thick anger he had just burned.

After a long time, Zhu Gaochi said: "Although that's the case, it's just this kind of behavior. Doesn't this mean that they are plundering and plundering the people?"

Mrs. Zhang shook her head and said: "Young Army was established by the emperor for Zhu Zhanji, and everyone in it will be Zhanji's team in the future, not to mention... Now that the emperor and grandson are in trouble, it is time for them to serve The best thing to do is to take the next best thing...they bought the land, and they tied the same rope with Zhili who promoted the New Deal."

"What His Highness thinks about is only the problem of means, and the essence of means is art. If you look at the problem with the eyes of art, what you can see is limited. However, the concubines think that since Your Highness is the heir, you should start from the height of 'Tao' Go look at this."

Zhu Gaochi was taken aback for a moment, and he paced back and forth with his hands behind his back.

Mrs. Zhang said, "Your Highness, why did Shang Yang's reform succeed?"

Zhu Gaochi said: "Is it because of Qin Xiaogong's full support?"

Mrs. Zhang smiled and said: "The concubine is an ignorant woman, and her knowledge of classics and history is superficial, so naturally she is far less profound than His Highness, but...the concubine dare not agree with His Highness's words."

Zhu Gaochi was taken aback for a moment: "Tell me and listen."

Mrs. Zhang stroked the messy strands on her forehead, and then said calmly: "If your Highness only thinks that Shang Yang's reforms were successful because of Qin Xiaogong's support, then why, after Qin Xiaogong's death, his son hated Shang Yang deeply and sent Shang Yang's car was torn apart in the city, and Shang Yang died without a whole body, but why did his new law still remain?"

"This……"

Zhang said: "This is because, even though the new King Hui of Qin hated the reformed Shang Yang, those old nobles still wanted to eat his flesh, but during the process of the reform, many upstarts followed Shang Yang's reform. They have already been appointed as marquises and ministers, and they have already had a huge influence in the Qin army and court. At this time, apart from punishing Shang Yang to vent his anger, King Qin Hui never dared to change Shang Yang's reform. Because he also knew that once Changing back to the old system will definitely offend the countless upstarts, and it will inevitably lead to backlash. The crux of the problem lies in this. If a reform is only harmful to the old nobility, no one will benefit. Such a reform It cannot last long."'

"Only if someone benefits from it and changes their way of seeking fame and fortune, then... once the new law is hindered, there will be a group of people who will firmly check and balance with the old nobles. This is the success of Shang Yang's reform."

Zhu Gaochi listened, thoughtful, and said: "It makes sense."

Mrs. Zhang went on to say: "The benefits here are actually tied to the new law, so it may not necessarily be possible to make huge profits. Let's say this time, these military officials of the young army, for the sake of the emperor and grandson, had to take out the money from their families. Money, everything went to buy commercial land in Zhili.”

"No matter what, they are also prosperous with Zhili's new policy, and they are all lost. If one day, the new law fails, and the land can only be used to cultivate food in the past, think about it, Your Highness. This 500 taels Isn’t the land where it came from worthless, and now... as long as the new law is still there, no matter whether it will be profitable or negative in the future, there is always something to look forward to, isn’t it?”

Hearing this, Zhu Gaochi couldn't help smiling wryly: "Hey...you don't discuss things with me anyway."

Mrs. Zhang pursed her lips and smiled: "The child has grown up and has his own opinions. How can he always ask his parents about everything? Zhanji will take on a big responsibility in the future. He has made a decision, so let him Try it, whether it is success or failure, if it succeeds, my family Zhanji is wise, but if it fails, at least let him learn from this lesson. It is like a child learning to walk. If you don't fall a few times, how can you make it?"

Zhu Gaochi was speechless for a moment.

Zhu Zhanji suddenly felt proud.

Zhu Gaochi glared at him, and then he drooped his head obediently again, with an expression of pain.

"Hey... these 3000 mu of land cost more than 100 million taels of silver, my God... more than 100 million taels..." Zhu Gaochi shook his head, feeling distressed.

But there is no other word.

…………

At this time, in Xiafu.

Xia Yuanji was looking at the accounts at home, only to feel his brain buzzing.

He is the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, although his salary is not low, but he is an official in Beijing, and the expenses are not small.

Fortunately, Xia's family is a big family in Jiangxi, they have quite a lot of money, so they can get by.

As the Minister of the Household Department, he guards the wealth of the world, but everyone knows that His Majesty keeps a close eye on the money, not to mention that Xia Yuanji is a clean person, even if he really dares to stretch out his hand, Zhu Di will probably cut him .

But now... Xia Yuanji only felt dizzy.

The steward at the side quickly supported him.

Xia Yuanji took a breath, then threw the account on the ground fiercely, and cursed angrily: "Nizi..."

"father……"

Xia Yuanji's eldest son died early, and Xia Yuanji was busy with taking care of the family business on weekdays, and became the second son Xia Xuan who was also a Yin official in the capital.

Looking at his father's flushed face with anger, Xia Xuan was already trembling, and said: "The emperor first found dozens of wealthy military officials in his family and asked them to buy land, and then called a few of us in for an audience. Of course our son refused to buy the land. Isn’t that a robbery for 500 taels of silver per mu? What’s more... our Xia family is required to buy [-] mu of land. come."

"But... But the emperor said... He has calculated... The Xia family can barely afford it. Don't we have a lot of fertile land in our hometown in Jiangxi? In addition to those colleagues who have already bought land, they all listen to it. The emperor's grandson ordered, desperately persuading, and even vaguely threatened, if you don't buy it, then...then..."

"Son, let's just say, I really can't afford so much money, can I just buy three or five acres... The emperor's grandson asked his son...to borrow money, and the son...although he is unwilling in every possible way, he can't hold back those military officials who have already bought the land, and The emperor's grandson's threats and lures. In this world, anyone can be offended, but who dares to offend the emperor's grandson?"

Xia Yuanji waved his hands distressedly and said, "Don't say it, don't say it."'

Xia Xuan was in a hurry: "Father, can this be my fault? At the beginning, I was working in Shangbaosi, but my father himself said that now His Majesty has formed a young army. This young army will protect the emperor and grandson. Once they can enter Youjun, it is like entering Zhan Shifu. As long as you can serve the emperor and grandson, your future will be limitless, but dad...you see..."

"Don't say it, don't say it..." Xia Yuanji continued to shake his head and wave his hands.

He sat down slowly, his eyes staring blankly into the void.

"Father... are you okay?" Xia Xuan looked at Xia Yuanji worriedly.

Xia Yuanji sat upright, but didn't move a muscle.

Xia Xuan wanted to say something, but she was afraid of provoking him, so she bowed to the ground, not daring to vent her anger.

a long time.

Xia Yuanji suddenly jumped up against the case: "They are robbing! I was an official... I didn't get much salary, but I even took my life and property away. Now that I have raised so many debts, this... this... is still a shame. Are people alive?"

Xia Xuan said with a mournful face: "The interest rate of the bank is also said to be preferential, [-]% per year, which is much lower than the interest on loans in the market, and the interest outside is more than [-]%."

"You still think we took advantage?" Xia Yuanji stomped his feet angrily: "You still use our house and land as compensation?"

Xia Xuan tremblingly said: "Not only that...but...also..."

"What else?"

"I also took my father's salary, saying yes... saying yes..."

Xia Yuanji: "..."

Xia Yuanji was completely convinced.

"Father, the military ministers up and down, actually... actually bought them all, not just our Xia family, the son of Jin Chun, Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice, he bought more than 40 mu. I heard that their family has practiced medicine for generations and is famous. There is a Taoist family, relying on treating people, earning a big family fortune..."

"Okay, okay." Xia Yuanji said: "Shut up, shut up! I want to play, I want to participate..."

When Xia Yuanji said this, he was suddenly discouraged.

Who to impeach?
Impeach the emperor's grandson?

The emperor's grandson is now among the three generations of the Zhu family's grandparents, Xia Yuanji thinks the most ideal monarch.

At any rate... the emperor's grandson will not scold his mother, or be too indecisive like a prince, right?
"Hey..." Xia Yuanji sat down, and said quietly: "Careless, still careless! Blame me, blame the old man! I only wanted to find a family for you, but pushed you into the fire pit. If I had known this, I should have let you On duty in Shangbao Division."

Xia Yuanji shook his head, but wanted to cry but had no tears.

…………

This kind of huge investment will undoubtedly bring huge impetus to the entire market.

The market is unbelievably hot.

A series of workshops sprang up from the ground.

As long as you open a workshop, you don't have to worry about sales.

A large number of craftsmen were recruited. They needed basic necessities, clothing, food and drink. As long as the cloth was spun, it could be exchanged for silver immediately.

As long as an inn or restaurant is open, there will be no worries about no diners.

Even before the workshop was built, orders had already been placed until the end of the year, especially for steel, wood, and mechanical components. The huge market demand had reached the point of insanity.

Even... a lot of craftsmen pooled money together and tried to find a way to borrow money from the bank. As long as the workshop was built, they could change themselves and become rich.

The whole of Qixia, or half of Zhili, seemed to be crazy.

Everyone felt...as if the ground was full of gold and silver, and they could be picked up by bending over.

Ever since, various workshops have sprung up like mushrooms after rain.

All the workshops are desperately recruiting workers, and the wages of the prefectures and counties under the administration of the Yoududu Mansion are more than twice that of the Suzhou Mansion.

And Suzhou is a place of prosperity, which is unprecedented.

In the workshop area that Kuang Ye is in charge of, almost every month, dozens of hundreds of documents about purchasing land and starting workshops are received.

Although there were some documents that did not comply with the regulations, such a grand occasion was beyond the imagination of Kuang Ye.

This is just a county. It seems that everyone is dreaming of building a workshop and getting rich from then on.

So much so that Kuang Ye himself felt that it was too scary.

The molten steel from the iron and steel workshops was prefabricated into rails, and then... was sent to the construction site by carts and horses. Dozens of railways were under construction.

The railway tracks of this era are not as troublesome as those of later generations. The land is leveled, the roadbed is laid, and the tracks can be laid directly.

Therefore, progress is also extremely fast.

Gao Xiang deals with various data every day.

Especially with the table, his understanding of the data is clearer.

At this time, Gao Xiang sat down in the duty hall of Zuo Dudu's Mansion, and said with a wry smile: "It's too scary, my lord...it's really unheard of."

Zhang Anshi looked at him without knowing it, and said, "What's the matter?"

Gao Xiang said: "Do you know how much steel production in Taiping Prefecture has increased in the past half a year since the opening of the railway?"

Zhang Anshi didn't have the patience to guess this, so he said, "Don't be fooled."

"Three times, fully three times..." Gao Xiang's voice was full of surprise.

Unlike Gao Xiang's reaction, Zhang Anshi was calm and didn't care.

Isn't that normal?The market is booming, and steel can be sold for money, but the gap in the market is so huge that the original steel workshops are desperately expanding their production, and more merchants are also eyeing this piece of fat, desperately borrowing money to raise funds to build new workshops.

If this is not doubled, Zhang Anshi's tens of millions of taels of funds to build the railway will be wasted.

"It's really the first railway construction industry!" Gao Xiang sighed shaking his head, and continued happily: "Not only iron and steel, but also mining... There are also other industries such as cloth and so on. The growth rate is also extremely high, and the output of minerals has also doubled. more than three times, and cloth, doubled... and..."

"Okay, okay." Zhang Anshi interrupted him, and said, "It's almost done. Now is not the time to be complacent. This is how much production. With this little steel production, I won't be afraid of being laughed at if I say it."

Gao Xiang still couldn't suppress the joy on his face, and said: "If this goes on like this, it's really scary."

Zhang Anshi said calmly: "Don't worry, there will be a lot of places that lack steel in the future... By the way, I heard that the Zuo Dudu's Mansion ruled all the mansions, and many people came to our Right Dudu's Mansion to rule. The King of Shu, no Angry?"

"Not at all." Gao Xiang said, "I'll tell you what to say. I've tested it a few times. The king of Shu is still thinking about dividing the land."

Zhang Anshi nodded, and continued: "That's good. The most important thing now is the lack of labor. In this regard, you, the governor of Taiping, have to think of a way. Don't always be surprised today and scary tomorrow. Let’s just focus on doing something serious.”

(End of this chapter)