In the morning court, after Li Longji received the news from Jili Province, he issued a new decree with the support of a group of officials.
Guns and cannons would be transferred from the arsenal and three thousand Jinwu Guards would be sent to the grassland to train. This was the place left behind by the Tujue after they retreated.
Zhang Shuo was especially happy because the guns and cannons had always been in the hands of the Zhang Family and Wang Family. He had tried several times to figure out how to make them, but to no avail.
In addition, the reason he objected last year was not approved by the Emperor, so he did not dare to propose to take control of the arsenal. It seemed that the Emperor trusted Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan more.
This time, he strongly supported the Emperor's proposal because he heard that the manufacturing of guns and cannons was very troublesome. For every gun that was up to standard, there would be around five that were not. The craftsmen that Zhang Family and Wang Family had gathered were working hard to improve that thing called lathe.
Three thousand Jinwu Guards, it was impossible for them to only take three thousand guns. Perhaps some of them would break down, but at least four thousand would be needed. This would put a lot of pressure on the Zhang Family and Wang Family. Furthermore, the cost of the cannons was not low. If the Zhang Family and Wang Family could not provide enough ammunition, he would have a reason to fight for power.
Standing there and thinking about happy things, Zhang Shuo could not help but smile.
On the other hand, Yu Wen Rong's side was worried. The enemy of an enemy was a friend. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan didn't like Zhang Shuo, so they had to rope them in. They didn't expect the two of them to stand on their side, but at least they had to let them know that they weren't a threat to them.
Gao Lishi was very good at reading people's expressions. When he saw the smile on Zhang Shuo's face, he bowed and said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, the officials are very happy to hear Your Majesty's proposal."
Li Longji's eyes also swept back and forth between the officials in sight. He did not miss Zhang Shuo's expression, and his face could not help but become gloomy.
He thought to himself, 'I don't know when Xiao Bao and Cuckoo's master will fight. I am already worried, but there are still people thinking about internal strife? Xiao Bao and Cuckoo are so sensible. Not only are they not supporting them, but they are also hoping that something will happen to their families. Their intentions are unforgivable. '
Thinking of this, Li Longji was even more annoyed with Zhang Shuo. In the past, he had thought that Zhang Shuo was not bad, but why was it that he could not see the maturity in him recently?
"Lishi, is there any news from Governor Zhang and Adjunct Wang in Jili Province?" Li Longji decided to let Zhang Shuo's faction suffer for a while as a form of warning. If they still didn't know when to back down, he would have to make a move.
Gao Lishi seemed to have a tacit understanding as he replied, "Your Majesty, Xiao Bao and Cuckoo know that the Turks are retreating to the north, that Japan is going to participate in the sea exploration, and that Silla is ready to make a move. They have already come up with a plan, but they haven't officially sent a letter to the capital yet. I think they will arrive in the next few days. When I return, I will show the letter to Your Majesty."
As Gao Lishi spoke, Li Longji seemed to have really not seen Gao Lishi's letter. He happily said, "That's good. The two of them have worked hard. I heard that the two of them have personally gone to the border with Silla. I hope there won't be any danger."
The officials really thought that the Emperor did not know the specific situation, but when they heard the Emperor say that the two of them had arrived at the border, they immediately understood that the Emperor was pretending. How could he know the situation if he had not read the letter? Heard it? Who told him?
"Your Majesty, please rest assured. The two of them have personally gone there because Xiao Bao does not wish to use war to solve the problem. I feel that with Xiao Bao's help, the matter of Silla can be solved. Perhaps there will be an unexpected situation."
Gao Lishi did not get the specific information from the letter, but he knew that it was fine if his godson did not make a move. Once he did, Silla could only wait to be unlucky. Xiao Bao's methods were unusual.
At this time, Zhang Shuo also restrained the smile on his face. He understood the meaning of the Emperor's words. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were still busy with the Tang Empire. They should not have any thoughts about the two of them. They should not do anything that they should not do. Otherwise, it would be easy to put the blame on someone else, such as sending them to Jili Province.
Li Longji seemed to feel that the blow was not enough. He asked again, "Lishi, how much military equipment and ammunition are in the armory now?"
Apart from Gao Lishi, Li Longji, and Zhang Zhong, the other officials really did not know. This was because it had been agreed that the Emperor would be in charge, and the people of the Zhang Family and Wang Family would assist in the management. The Ministry of War and the Head of the Secretariat could only stand aside.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on Gao Lishi, wanting to get a detailed report from him.
"Your Majesty, I just went to count yesterday. Now, there are 4,000 pistols in the armory, 6,000 single-shot spears, 1,500 semi-automatic spears, 200 boxes of pistol bullets, 500 rounds per box, 400 boxes of rifle bullets, 800 rounds per box, 150 towed cannons, 3,000 shells, 15,000 grenades, and landmines …"
The number of weapons reported one by one made everyone dumbfounded. Even if they knew that the arsenal controlled by Zhang Family and Wang Family was very powerful and knew the power of the new weapons, they could not figure out how they could produce so many weapons.
Zhang Shuo felt even more pressure. For a person, the most terrifying thing was not knowing. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan seemed to have a close relationship with the Emperor, to the extent that they were closer than the Prime Minister. In terms of favored officials, the two of them were not the kind of people who relied on the Emperor's good impression to do things. Their own strength was there. In terms of being able to be an official, many times, they did not follow the etiquette of a monarch.
'Should I secretly remind Xin Luo that Zhang Xiaobao is going to use underhanded methods?' Zhang Shuo, who felt the pressure, was tempted. As soon as this thought appeared, he suppressed it. Forget it, he believed that the people of Xin Luo also knew how Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's methods were.
It was better for him to be honest. Otherwise, if the two of them found out, they could easily kill their way to Hanyuan Palace Hall on a whim one day and shoot him a few times. Yes, it was very easy. Even Xiaobei and the others dared to bring up the official registrar of the Ministry of Works, let alone their brother and sister.
There was no normal person in this family. They did not know what compromise was and did not follow the rules.
All the officials had their own thoughts. For a moment, Hanyuan Palace Hall was silent.
Seeing that his initial goal had been achieved, Li Longji opened his mouth and said, "The three thousand Jinwu Guards entered the grassland this time. First, they represented the imperial court to accept the Turks. Second, they were to check the terrain and make a detailed map. Third, they were to improve their proficiency in using weapons. Fourth, there were too many wolves on the grassland. They were to find other animals and let the people of Fengzhou follow them. They were to make canned food and bring it back to the capital for everyone to taste."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." The officials quickly expressed their gratitude. The canned food of Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had been leaked, but the recipe had not been leaked. A food that was originally for the inner court to carry on a long journey had now become a luxury item. One could not help but sigh.
"In that case, the court is dismissed." Seeing that no one brought up anything new, Li Longji left with this sentence and left in his carriage.
The officials looked at each other and hurried back to their respective offices. In their hearts, they knew that the Turks were finished. The three thousand Jinwu Guards were equipped with good weapons. In addition to the hot air balloons patrolling the sky, it was very likely that they would catch the Turks off guard and attack them directly.
*****
Changfeng Pavilion, built by the river, had three floors. One could see the murmuring water of the muddy river flowing, and there was even a slight breeze on the surface of the river.
Just like other restaurants, the higher the floor, the more expensive the dishes were. This was especially so for the rooms facing the river. Ordinary people could only look at them but could not afford them.
Li Dong had gathered the people from the other powers on the third floor. Originally, he had planned to come tomorrow, but who knew that the foreign affairs of Zhengzheng Construction would come today. Furthermore, they even said that they would give him a fortune. Regardless of the other party's intentions, he still had to show the necessary etiquette.
Thus, he brought forward the date to this evening. If the people of Zhengzheng Construction Group wanted to threaten him, he would have a few more helpers to help him.
In a room on the third floor, more than twenty people were seated at three tables. Some of them were clearly dispirited, as if they had just come out from a brothel not long ago. If one were to look carefully while walking, one might see that some of them had weak legs.
More than twenty people gathered here and kept drinking tea. There was no dish on the table. After waiting for half an hour, they finally saw Li Dong, who had come back from outside and met the people of Zhengzheng Construction Group by chance, walking in with the people of Zhengzheng Construction Group while chatting and laughing.
Finally, more than twenty people stood up and greeted them one after another. They glanced at the people of Zhengzheng Construction Group from time to time. If they were just building houses for others, they would not pay so much attention to them. However, they knew clearly who was behind Zhengzheng Construction Group, so they had to pay attention to them.
After greeting each other, they sat down again. The waiter of the restaurant hurriedly served cold dishes and wine so that they could eat first.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Boss Li has already introduced me. I am Zhang Tie, the foreign affairs manager of Zhengzheng Construction Group. However, I'm sure you don't know why I'm here today. I wish you all a prosperous business and fortune."
The foreign affairs of Zhengzheng Construction Group asked the waiter to fill the wine glasses first. Then, he picked up the glasses and started to talk to the people at present. After that, he drank up the wine in the glasses.
Seeing him drinking up, the others also drank up a bowl of wine. After burping, they knew that Zhang Tie had something to say. Therefore, they all fixed their eyes on Zhang Tie and waited for him to open his mouth.
After putting down the bowl, Zhang Tie picked up a cucumber and chewed it. Weiwei shook her head. Apparently, he didn't like the cold dish of cucumber in Changfeng Pavilion.
Li Dong didn't make any comment on this. Now that Zhang Tie was from Zhang Clan and Wang Clan, he must have eaten better food than Changfeng Pavilion. Besides, Between the Clouds and the Water and Blue Sea Silver Sand were not decorations.
After forcefully swallowing the cucumber, Zhang Tie put down his chopsticks. It seemed that he didn't want to continue eating. After looking around with a smile, Weiwei shook her head and said, "Not many people. That's it. After letting you know about it, we will find more people to cooperate with you."
After hearing that, over twenty people also put down their chopsticks and pricked up their ears in case of missing something important.
"Here's the thing. Zhengzheng Construction Group wants to cooperate with you to build a road from Jili Province to here. The total cost is estimated to be 11 million strings of coins. As long as you contribute a little bit, the road will be built."
Zhang Tie casually uttered a figure.
However, this figure startled all the people at present. 11 million strings of coins? How much was a little bit? If it was divided equally, it seemed that it was not enough even if they sold all the goods.
Before someone raised the question, Zhang Tie continued, "If it's not divided equally, you will not have enough cash flow, right?"
All the people nodded as they knew that Zhang Tie was giving them face. Otherwise, they would not have enough cash flow. They would not have enough cash flow even if they sold all their properties.
"Therefore, Zhengzheng Construction Group will take 10 million strings of coins. You only need to take 1 million strings of coins in total. If you put too much money on goods, you can find others to join you.
You might ask why we want to build a road. To tell you the truth, our young master has taken a fancy to some specialties of Xinluo and wants to expand the business. Meanwhile, there will be new specialties of Jili Province in the near future. We want to sell them to Xinluo. Previously, we planned to use ships; however, we were afraid that you would not be able to see the benefits; therefore, we came here to seek for cooperation by land. "
Zhang Tie's words revealed that he was afraid of the over twenty people at present, which made Li Dong and the others feel much better. It seemed that they were very powerful when they joined hands. Even Zhang Xiaobao would be afraid of them. This was an acknowledgement.
"Fine, 1 million strings of coins. If we join hands, we could … could … we have to study it carefully." The moment one of them was going to agree, he caught Li Dong's eye. Therefore, he hurriedly changed his words, which sounded awkward.
At this moment, Li Dong opened his mouth, "Foreign Affairs Secretary Zhang, what's the road like? If we spend money to build a road, what will we get in return? If it's just convenient transportation, with all due respect, it's not cost-effective. Even if there's no new road, we will find a way to transport goods by land. Why should we spend more money? "
The others suddenly considered this question as they nodded inside and stared at Zhang Tie.
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