Beiyang reactionaries

"Xiao Ruo, because there have been too many things in the southwest in the past few years, I haven't been able to pay attention to the things in the west of Henan, and I haven't been able to support you well. How is the situation recently?"

Western Henan.

Although it is Duan Xun's lair, Duan Xun really hasn't paid much attention to Yuxi in recent years.Because in Duan Xun's mind, the western part of Henan is barren.

In comparison, Sichuan is much richer.

Duan Xun focused most of his energy on how to build Sichuan, and then how to control Yunnan and Guizhou.This has been the main work for the past few years.Because Duan Xun was really short of money, and he had borrowed money everywhere in the past two years, so Duan Xun's support for Duan Kan in western Henan was also very small.

In the past few years, he has only relied on his own status to prevent others from thinking about Yuxi, and he has really ignored Duan Kan, and has not given him economic and military support.

Even because of lack of money last year, Duan Xun sold all his early properties in Western Henan.On the whole, Duan Xun was still very embarrassed to see Duan Kan today.After all, after I left Henan West, I left Duan Kan in Henan to watch the house, but I didn't give him any support, and Duan Kan came over alone.

"Very good. Brother, I am not only the commander of the No.18 mixed brigade, I also have the first brigade, the second brigade, and the third brigade under my command. Each brigade has an establishment of 3000 people."

Duan Kan proudly showed off to Duan Xun.

Duan Xun was taken aback.

Duan Xun knows the economic situation in Western Henan better than anyone else.Although Duan Xun also raised more than 1 troops when he was in western Henan, Duan Xun's No.20 Ninth Mixed Brigade at that time had a huge establishment, which originally consisted of more than 7000 troops.More than half of the army's military expenses are allocated by the Ministry of the Army.

The rest of the money was the result of Duan Xun's monopoly on several important transactions in Western Henan.

But Duan Xun had already sold all his properties in western Henan last year, where did Duan Kan get the money to support so many troops.According to Duan Kan, in addition to the No.18 mixed brigade directly under the Ministry of the Army, Duan Kan also supported nearly [-] troops.After all, three infantry brigades were trained.

How can this be?

What's going on in the west of Henan, can Duan Xun not know?

In the past few years, I haven't given Duan Kan any support.Don't say that you haven't given money to Duan Kan, and you haven't supported weapons.Duan Xun's request is that Duan Kan only needs to be able to keep Duan Xun's lair.In other words, Duan Kan only needs to be the commander of his No.18 mixed brigade, and he doesn't expect anything else.But how did Duan Kan develop so many troops?

Unbelievable.

"Xiao Ruo, are you sure you are not joking?"

"Brother, why would I be joking with you? What I said is true. In fact, if it weren't for being too public, I would like to expand the army by two brigades this year."

"Where did you get the money?"

This is what Duan Xun is most puzzled about.

money?

Where did Duan Kan get the money from?

How much money can come out of that broken place in the west of Henan.Duan Xun knows better than anyone else how the economy in western Henan is and what the tax situation is.Duan Xun couldn't figure out where Duan Kan got so much money to support so many soldiers.To put it bluntly, even if you are like a Zhou in Western Henan, you don't have much money to search and clean the place.It is also difficult to feed so many troops.

"The opium tax."

"What did you say?"

The moment he heard Duan Kan's words, Duan Xun was furious.

Pointing to Duan Kan, he said, "You grow opium in western Henan?"

"No, brother. You banned smoking in western Henan back then, so how could I grow opium in western Henan. The opium tax I mentioned is that I collect taxes from the opium caravans passing through our western Henan."

"Can this opium tax have so much?"

Duan Xun was puzzled.

When Duan Xun was in western Henan in his early years, he also collected opium taxes.Duan Xun will impose heavy taxes on the opium caravans passing through the west of Henan.At that time, Duan Xun's tax revenue was not low.

However, the amount of opium coming from the west of Henan cannot be said to be very large. It would be good if the opium tax can be 60 million a year.In western Henan, opium tax and salt tax are the most important taxes.However, although the opium tax is not low, this amount of money is definitely not enough to feed so many troops.

"Brother, you don't know. Since you banned smoking in Sichuan two years ago, especially in the three provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou last year, the price of opium in the whole country has increased several times. And the main opium producing area is currently Shaanxi. And Shanxi, especially Shaanxi is the largest opium producing area in the north. It is estimated that [-]% to [-]% of the opium in the area north of the Yangtze River comes from Shaanxi. The opium from Shaanxi enters our western Henan through Tongguan. Then it goes to Luoyang in the northwestern part of Henan. , sold to Zhili, Shandong and other areas. Or go south into Hubei, east into Kaifeng, and sell to Anhui, Jiangsu and other areas. It can be said that most of the opium in Shaanxi is sold to various places through our western Henan."

Duan Xun was very surprised.

Duan Xun vigorously banned smoking in the three provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou, which greatly pushed up the price of opium in the whole country.In the past, more than half of China's opium was provided by the three provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou. However, when Duan Xun began to ban smoking two years ago, this opium production area disappeared, causing the price of opium across the country to soar.Others, seeing the profit, took to growing opium.

Shaanxi is the top card here.

In other provinces, either the land and weather are not suitable, or they cannot afford to lose that face.However, in the past two years, Shaanxi has vigorously encouraged the cultivation of opium, resulting in most of the opium north of the Yangtze River coming from Shaanxi.

Before Duan Xun entered Shaanxi, the information he got was that at present, more than one-third of the land in Shaanxi is planted with opium.Not only Chen Shufan and Liu Zhenhua were short of money, but they began to encourage folks to grow opium.Even in the territory of the Yasukuni Army in Shaanxi, there are many people who grow opium.Although the Shaanxi Jingguo Army did not encourage the people to plant opium, they turned a blind eye to the situation of opium planting.

After all, the Shaanxi Yasukuni Army also needs money.

Only by collecting some opium taxes can the troops be maintained.

Moreover, the people of Shaanxi see that growing opium is more profitable than growing food, so even the Guanzhong Plain, such a good land, many people spontaneously grow opium.Chen Shufan and the Shaanxi Yasukuni Army fought to the death, but they all took a tacit attitude towards the opium merchants in Shaanxi.It's just that when they passed, the opium tax was collected on them.

Shaanxi grows so much opium, but Shaanxi itself does not have the strength to digest it.After all, Shaanxi is not a rich province, and it grows so much opium that it is impossible to digest it internally.Nor do they grow opium for internal digestion.They began to export the opium grown and sold it to other provinces to make money.

However, there are not many exports from Shaanxi.

To the south is Sichuan, which is inaccessible.To the north is Mongolia, to the west is Gansu, even if there are opium merchants, they can't sell much.To the east is Shanxi, but Yan Xishan in Shanxi would not accept opium from Shaanxi, because Yan Xishan apparently banned smoking, but the opium business in Shanxi was controlled by Yan Xishan, how could Shaanxi opium come to grab business.Therefore, Shaanxi has limited channels to go out, either entering Henan or Hubei.Hubei is not easy to go, and entering Henan from Tongguan is the best way.

Therefore, a large number of opium in Shaanxi entered the west of Henan from Tongguan, and then entered the big cities of Luoyang and Kaifeng through the west of Henan.Then relying on these big cities, they are sold to other places.

The number of these opium is astonishing.

Just like the troops of the Guangxi army, when the Yunnan soil (Yunnan opium) was rampant, it was able to support tens of thousands of troops by collecting the opium tax from the Yunnan soil.Now that the price of opium has risen sharply, Duan Kan collects opium tax on Shaanxi opium in western Henan, earning millions of dollars every year.

The money is literally rolling in.

For a place like Western Henan, where there are only more than 20 counties, the opium tax of several million a year makes Duan Kan's life more and more nourishing.

"Especially since last year, the amount of opium produced in Shaanxi has increased sharply. After Chen Shufan fought with the Shaanxi Jingguo Army, the amount of opium passing through our western Henan this year is three times that of last year, and the opium tax has increased many times. Preliminary calculations , so far we have collected nearly 800 million opium taxes in western Henan this year."

Duan Xun opened his mouth wide.

What is the concept of 800 million.

With Wang Yongjiang rectifying the finances of the three provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou, Yunnan's annual fiscal revenue has increased a lot, but it is only about 1000 million.It is estimated that after the cooperation with Sichuan in the past two years, it will be at most 400 million.Guizhou is only about 600 million.

But in a poor place in Henan in the west of Henan, the opium tax alone is 800 million.

Apart from being surprised, Duan Xun only had one thought.That is how much opium was planted in Shaanxi and how much opium was sold.The opium tax in one place in western Henan is nearly 800 million, so there are also a lot of opium taxes along the way.Shaanxi opium is estimated to have sold 5000 million, 6000 million or more.

In fact, more than half of the money in the opium trade is opium tax collected by local governments.

And it's only October, which means this year hasn't completely passed yet.If November and December are counted, then the opium tax collected in western Henan this year may exceed [-] million.

What is this concept.

"In the past year, in the west of Henan, can your financial revenue reach tens of millions?"