The route proposed by Ang Lee was completely in line with Li Longji's wishes. This made Li Longji very happy. Of course, anyone with a strategic vision could see that Anxi and Shuofang were both extremely important places, especially Anxi, which was very important to the Tang Empire. This area was a major channel for the Tang Empire to communicate with the outside world, and it was also an area where the Tang Empire expanded its influence. If the capital was to be stable, Anxi had to be protected.
This was also why the Tang Empire had to pay such a huge price to maintain Anxi. It was just that the distance was too far, and it was not easy to maintain this area. Maintaining twenty thousand soldiers in Anxi required ten times the amount of money as compared to the inland, which was enough to maintain two hundred thousand soldiers near the capital. This was also why the Anxi army had to be made up of elites. What was the point of spending ten times the price if they did not raise elite soldiers?
Now that the railway and steam locomotives had been successfully invented, they only needed to pave the railway to Anxi. In the future, the Imperial Court's supplies could be continuously transported to Anxi, greatly reducing the loss of the journey. The Tang Empire could also send more troops to Anxi, thus solidifying their control over Anxi. They could even further expand their territory and conquer more distant lands.
"Anxi, very good. This Emperor and the other Prime Ministers also have the same idea. However, Anxi is at most ten thousand li away from the capital. Isn't the amount of work required to pave this railway a bit too much? Do we have sufficient materials, manpower, and financial resources? Assistant Minister Li, have you calculated?"
Li Longji was very eager to build a railway to Anxi, but he could not determine the cost of this railway. After all, other than the length of the railway, which could be directly calculated, the foundations, bridges, culverts, and so on could not be determined.
"Your Majesty, the route has not been determined yet, so it is not easy to calculate. We must first determine the route before we can calculate. Also, if Your Majesty feels that it is impossible to pave everything in one go, you can take two steps. First, pave a railway to Yumen Pass, and connect Shanzhou and Liangzhou. This way, the troops in Longyou and Hexi can be mobilized more easily. The remaining half can be laid later to reduce the pressure of the first pave."
Ang Lee suggested. After all, this kind of stage victory was the most suitable.
"Well, Assistant Minister Li, when do you think it's a good time to lay it down?"
"Your Majesty, after the autumn harvest, the weather will turn cold. We can use this time to determine the route and store the rails. After the spring plowing next year, we can immediately recruit laborers to start laying the rails."
Ang Lee suggested seriously.
"Alright, let's do it this way. After the autumn harvest, immediately send two groups of people. One group will investigate the railway line leading to the Jade Gate Pass, and the other group will investigate the railway line leading to the Central Surrendered City. After the spring plowing next year, the two railway lines will be laid together."
Li Longji decided on the spot. He had been thinking about the new railway line for a long time. After listening to Ang Lee's suggestion, he immediately decided.
"Your Majesty, there is one more thing that I must say."
Ang Lee said as he recalled his promise to Yu Chaoen.
"Assistant Minister Li, if you have something to say, just say it. There's no need to hesitate."
"Your Majesty, now the railway line from Chang 'an to Luoyang has been completely connected. Twenty steam locomotives and a large number of carriages are also under construction. It won't be long before the passenger and freight trains can be put into operation, which will greatly facilitate the communication between the two cities. However, there will be a fee for this, and the profit will be very considerable. Moreover, as the railway line is further popularized in the future, the profit will be even greater. Whoever has the right to operate the railway line will be as rich as a country. Your Majesty, how can you give this opportunity to others?"
Ang Lee said patiently.
Upon hearing this, Li Longji was greatly moved. In recent days, he had learned a lot about trains and railway lines. Moreover, through the matter of transporting tens of thousands of laborers back to Chang 'an in two days, he saw the huge practical potential of the railway. After Ang Lee's reminder, he naturally understood the high profits that the railway line could bring.
Imagine a large transport caravan of hundreds of carriages from Chang 'an to Luoyang. It would take half a month to travel from Chang' an to Luoyang. Moreover, it would require a large number of coachmen, horses, and guards. The coachmen and guards would need to eat and pay wages. The horses would also need to eat fodder. The consumption along the way would be huge, and it would take a lot of time. In short, the transportation cost would be enormous.
A train could easily transport these goods to the destination within a day, and the transportation cost would be greatly reduced. For those who had the resources of a train, they only needed to offer a price that was twice as low as that of a carriage to make the merchants accept it happily. The profit was simply unbelievable!
"Assistant Minister Li, you mean to let me add another industry and personally send my confidant to be in charge of the railway operation?"
Li Longji asked.
"Your Majesty, that's exactly what I mean. Such high profits can't be shared by any aristocratic family. Only when all of them belong to Your Majesty and the imperial court will it be a blessing for the Tang dynasty."
Ang Lee didn't evade and said directly. He didn't believe that Li Longji wouldn't be tempted by the solar stove.
"Assistant Minister Li's proposal is very good, but how should it be done? Who should I send to be in charge of the railway operation? "
Li Longji looked at Ang Lee for help.
"Your Majesty, six bureaus of the Minister of Internal Affairs are too few. Why don't we add a railway bureau and let Yu Chaoen be the railway commissioner. He will be in charge of the railway and will be assigned a large number of relevant officials. In this way, we can ensure that the railway profits are firmly in Your Majesty's hands."
Ang Lee said bluntly.
"Yu Chaoen? Can a little eunuch like him really be competent for such a big matter? "
Li Longji had doubts about Yu Chaoen's ability. A eunuch? Generally, most eunuchs were ignorant and incompetent. There were relatively few capable eunuchs. Would a knowledgeable and cultured scholar choose to castrate himself instead of taking the imperial examination?
"Your Majesty, through my observation over the past few months, I found that Yu Chaoen is very capable and meticulous. Moreover, he always considers Your Majesty. Even Old General Guo Ziyi can't do anything to him."
Ang Lee almost laughed out loud. He wanted to laugh when he thought of Guo Ziyi leaving in a huff.
"Guo Ziyi? What's going on? "
Ang Lee didn't hide anything and told him about Guo Ziyi's attempt to deceive Yu Chaoen and steal the 500 solar stoves.
"What a good Guo Ziyi. I asked him to wait for a few more days, but he dared to deceive me."
Li Longji's angry face had a hint of a smile. He also admired Guo Ziyi's boldness. If the 500 solar stoves were really stolen, as the emperor, he really couldn't punish Old Guo. After all, Old Guo did everything to save fodder for the army. Moreover, it wasn't a big deal. As the emperor, he could only suffer in silence.
But at the same time, he also found that Yu Chaoen was reliable and principled. If he was an ordinary official, he might give in to Guo Ziyi's request. In that case, he couldn't keep the 500 solar stoves.
"Haha! Yu Chaoen is really a talent. It's a waste of his talent to let him be in charge of the solar stoves. Well, anyway, he's only in charge of the overall situation. The specific operation of the railway still needs to be arranged by Assistant Minister Li. "
Li Longji thought it through and thought that Yu Chaoen could be appointed.
"Yes, Your Majesty. I accept your order."
Ang Lee answered happily.
"By the way, Assistant Minister Li, if you put the railway into the Minister of Internal Affairs, you will definitely be opposed by the ministers, especially those who admonish you. They will definitely annoy me. How should I deal with it?"
Li Longji suddenly thought of a very troublesome thing.
But Yu Chaoen is only in charge of the overall management and doesn't need to be in charge of the specific dispatching work. Your Majesty can explain this point. In addition, these admonish ministers can only make suggestions. They can't do nothing. If you put them into the Railway Residence, they will be in charge of supervising Yu Chaoen's work. Whoever dares to oppose him will be put into the Railway Bureau. In this way, not only can you reduce the opposition of the ministers, but also can supervise Yu Chaoen and prevent him from doing anything out of line. At the same time, it will give Your Majesty some peace and quiet, killing three birds with one stone! "
Ang Lee gave his strategy.
"Good, Assistant Minister Li is indeed resourceful. We will listen to you this time. However, the ranks of the various Minister of Internal Affairs are too low. The Railway Bureau should be a bit higher, at most fourth rank!"
Li Longji decided to raise the status of the Railway Bureau so that the ministers could see the importance the Emperor placed on the railway.
Afterwards, Ang Lee explained in detail the soft sleeper, hard sleeper, soft seat, hard seat, as well as the dining car and stable car that he had developed for Li Longji. He also calculated the price of the various seats.
Li Longji felt very novel and excited when he heard this. In particular, Ang Lee's method of dividing the ticket prices made Li Longji the most excited.
"Assistant Minister Li, after the autumn harvest, We plan to tour Luoyang. We will take the railway. You must prepare well. Also, now that the steam locomotive has been invented, the transport capacity has greatly increased. Our Imperial Train should also have a few more carriages!"
Li Longji said with a smile.
"Your Majesty, this lowly subject will do his best to prepare. In addition, this lowly subject has already added ten more carriages for Your Majesty. Together with the five carriages from last time, there will be a total of fifteen carriages. If Your Majesty needs it, we can add a few more to store carriages and horses."
Ang Lee replied with a smile.
"Good, good, good. Assistant Minister Li, do as you see fit. In addition, prepare a few more trains. We can't have the guards follow behind the trains. Have them sit on the trains and guard the Imperial Train. "
Li Longji had considered everything quite thoroughly. He had even thought of the guards.
"Your Majesty, be at ease. Twenty locomotives can be completed in half a month. At that time, we can guarantee that Your Majesty and the tens of thousands of troops will be transported to Luoyang in one go."
Ang Lee promised.
"No, no, no. I don't need so many people on the day I set out. I only need around five thousand people. However, I can send twenty thousand guards to Luoyang City two days in advance. I only need a few thousand personal guards. That's enough."
Li Longji felt that too many people would affect his mood, so he decided to reduce the number of people and have the main force of the guards arrive at their destination ahead of time.
"Yes, Your Majesty. This lowly subject knows what to do."
Ang Lee confidently replied.
"By the way, Assistant Minister Li, after autumn, the weather will become colder and colder. Assistant Minister Li has a vegetable greenhouse and can continue to grow vegetables, but the land of the people is completely abandoned. Assistant Minister Li can do some research in this area so that the people can plant another crop after the autumn harvest and harvest it in the spring ploughing next year."
Li Longji was just about to ask Ang Lee to leave, but he suddenly felt that he could let Ang Lee do some research in agriculture. After all, agriculture was the foundation of the Tang Empire. If they could plant two crops a year, the problem of food shortage in the Tang Empire would be completely solved.
Hearing this, Ang Lee thought carefully. It seemed to be true. In the Guanzhong area, millet seemed to be the only crop. After the autumn harvest, the land would be abandoned and would not be used until the spring ploughing next year.
"Your Majesty, there is no need to study this. We can directly plant wheat."
Ang Lee directly gave the answer.
"Wheat? In this weather in Guanzhong, can wheat be planted in autumn and winter? "
Li Longji was very confused.
"I think it can be done. If Your Majesty doesn't believe it, you can plant some in a small area after the autumn harvest this year and see the effect. Then, if the effect is good, it can be promoted next year."
Ang Lee said easily.
"I see. I will arrange people from the Ministry of Revenue to be responsible. If the effect is good, Assistant Minister Li will make a great contribution."
Li Longji said happily and waved his hand to ask Ang Lee to leave.
"Assistant Minister Li, Assistant Minister Li …"
Ang Lee had just left Zichen Palace when he ran into Yu Chaoen at a corner outside. However, it did not seem to be a chance encounter. Yu Chaoen deliberately waited here.
"Assistant Minister Li, what a coincidence! Xiaonu just happened to pass by, just happened to pass by. "
Yu Chaoen's lying skills seemed real, but Ang Lee had already seen through everything. How could there be so many coincidences in the world?
"Coincidence, what a coincidence! Envoy Yu is going to Zichen Palace, right? His Majesty is inside, go quickly! "
Yu Chaoen took two steps and then turned back to Ang Lee. He said with a smile, "Assistant Minister Li, the railway has been repaired. I don't know what you plan to do next. Someone has to take care of such an important matter!"
"Envoy Yu wants to ask about the matter this official promised you, right? How long have you been waiting here? "
Ang Lee smiled.
"Hehe, I can't hide anything from Assistant Minister Li. I just arrived, just arrived."
Yu Chaoen replied with a smile.
"Your sister, you're still lying. However, this is not the main point, nor is it important."
"Congratulations, Envoy Yu. His Majesty has decided to set up a railway bureau in the Minister of Internal Affairs. The highest rank in this railway bureau is a fourth-grade official. His Majesty also values Envoy Yu very much. If there are no accidents, Envoy Yu will be in charge of the railway bureau."
Ang Lee said softly.
"Is that true? That's great. Thank you, Assistant Minister Li. Xiaonu will always remember your kindness. "
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