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Lingbo can't cross the Hengtang Road, but I watch the fragrant dust go away... ... How much leisure is there? A river of tobacco, a city full of wind and catkins, and plums are yellow when it rains.
April in Nanjing was the rainy season, and the whole city was covered with mist and rain. Crystal clear water drops dripped from the eaves of the horse-head walls on the streets. The newly paved asphalt road was washed black and shiny by the rain.
The willows on both sides of the Qinhuai River were wet with rain, with their soft branches drooping low, gently brushing the pleasure boats passing by on the river.
On the misty street, oil-paper umbrellas bloom like flowers in the rain, and the curtain corners of the passing BMW cars reveal a touching face from time to time.
The restaurants and teahouses on the street were full of people drinking and tasting tea, and the sound of various conversations could be heard constantly;
Some people lamented that after the founding of the Qin Dynasty, the climate became favorable and no longer abnormal like in the late Ming Dynasty. This was a sign that the mandate of heaven had returned to the Qin Dynasty.
Some were discussing that the court had begun building an asphalt road from Changsha to Kunming. For such a large project, the court did not impose any forced labor, and it also created many business opportunities. It was said that some people went to quarry quarries and made a lot of money.
There was also talk of the royal family having another heir. Eight days ago, Lan Zhaoyi in the palace gave birth to a son, the second prince, ending the situation where the royal family had only one heir, the crown prince.
In addition, the Empress Dowager and a concubine named Song became pregnant one after another, and the royal family of Qin was about to flourish. This was a sign of national prosperity, and even ordinary people were happy about it.
The most talked about topic is undoubtedly the discovery of the gold mountain in Luzon. This topic is always present in every restaurant and teahouse, and when this matter is brought up, everyone becomes particularly excited and speaks very loudly.
"It is said that in the 30th year of the Wanli reign, there was a man named Zhang Yi who was good at fortune-telling. He told Emperor Wanli that the Jiyi Mountain in Luzon was rich in gold and silver, and that it could mine 100,000 taels of gold and 300,000 taels of silver every year. Emperor Wanli then asked Gao Mi, the tax collector of Fujian, to send Wang Shihe, the county magistrate of Haicheng, and Yu Yicheng, a centurion, to accompany Zhang Yi to Luzon for an inspection..."
"That's right. That's right. I heard about this recently. At that time, Zhang Yi and his team returned empty-handed. Everyone thought he was lying, but who would have thought that this was actually true."
"Emperor Wanli is not blessed with such a mountain of gold. Your Majesty is a blessed emperor. This mountain of gold is destined to be reserved for Your Majesty to enjoy..."
"That's right. At that time, the Spanish suspected that the Ming court had some conspiracy because of this incident. They were worried that when Emperor Wanli sent troops to seize Luzon, the local Han people would be the accomplices, so they massacred the local Han people. Alas, it would be fine if you said that Emperor Wanli was not blessed with this mountain of gold, but he also killed countless innocent people. It's really... Alas. I won't say more."
"What is Jiyi Mountain? The place where the gold mountain was discovered is called Biyao Mountain. It is said to be like a fairyland. A local native found a 20-jin gold nugget. The Royal Navy went there after they found out about it."
"That's not right. I heard that His Majesty had the Emperor Qin Shi Huang tell him in his dream, so he asked the Royal Navy to go look for him."
"That's it. That's it."
"No matter how it was discovered, it is absolutely true that the gold mountain was found in Luzon. My brother-in-law just brought a ship of prisoners back from Luzon. When they arrived in Baguio, they deliberately stopped the boat and went ashore to see it."
"You know who said this is fake. I heard that many people from Fujian and Guangdong are running to Luzon."
"Liu Er, why don't we go and take a look? We might be able to make a fortune by riding my brother-in-law's boat."
"That's what I was thinking..."
In the Qin Palace, Qin Mu did not have it as easy as the common people.
When Qitat and Tuya led thousands of troops to the northern desert, Qin Mu was worried that it would disrupt the fragile balance among the three tribes of Tushetub, Zasaktu and Chechen in the northern desert.
Now, as expected, this winter and spring, the Mobei grassland has undergone earth-shaking changes. Judging from the news that has been sent back, if nothing unexpected happens, it is only a matter of time before the remnants of Tushetu Khan Gunbu who retreated to the Burhan Mountains are annexed.
The remaining, weaker Chechen tribe was either forced to submit or annexed.
Then the northern part of the desert would basically become unified, which was very bad news for the Qin Dynasty, which was trying to deal with the Mongolian area south of the desert.
Outside the Jianjia Hall, the drizzle was like smoke, spreading over the tall glazed tiles. The shadows of pavilions, towers, flying eaves and brackets were vaguely visible, like a hazy ink painting.
The cool breeze of rain seeped into the hall, causing the smoke from the incense burner to drift away.
Qin Mu had a purple wooden hairpin inserted in his hair, which made him look very simple.
Sitting below were the Minister of War He Liang, the Vice Minister Gu Jun'en, the Right Vice Minister Wen Dun, the Commander-in-Chief of the Central Army Liu Meng, as well as Han Gang, Su Jin, Li Guo, Gao Yigong, Di Zhongxing, Huang Zhenlin from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gan Nan, and Xu Yingjie from the Ministry of Revenue.
Guangde Marquis Gao Yigong said: "Your Majesty, the changes in Mobei cannot be ignored, but the situation is not so bad that it cannot be handled. The Mongolian governor is stationed in Khorchin and controls seven armies. It should not be a problem to deal with the possible invasion from Mobei."
Qin Mu said, "If it were only the changes in Mobei, I wouldn't be too worried. When the Junggar of Moxi summoned the Mongolian tribes to the alliance, the Zasaktu Khan Norbu of Mobei also participated, and together they accepted the Junggar's Matur as the leader of the alliance. Now Mobei and Moxi are both tending to be unified. If the two sides work together, my Great Qin's thousands of miles northwest border may never have peace again. What good strategies do you have to deal with this?"
Liu Meng, the commander-in-chief of the Central Army, said: "Your Majesty, I think that combining defense with offense is the only way to solve the problem. Otherwise, the northwest defense line of thousands of miles will be difficult to defend everywhere."
Li Guo, the commander-in-chief of the Right Army, also echoed, "Your Majesty, I agree with Commander Liu's strategy of combining defense with offense. Now among the three tribes in Mobei, there is still a Chechen Khan Shuolei, who is definitely unwilling to be annexed by Norbu and Qitate. I think that at this time, we can send Changping Hou Aobai to lead the seven tribes to conquer Mobei, and at the same time use Chechen Khan Shuolei to defeat Norbu and Qitate first, and then solve the problem of Chechen Khan Shuolei."
Huang Zhenlin said: "Your Majesty, we must be cautious when sending troops to Mobei at this time."
Qin Mu understood what he meant. The Qin Empire was trying every means to subdue the tribes south of the desert. This was a sensitive period. If the war in the northern desert went badly, the prestige that the Qin Empire had just established in the southern desert might fall apart, leading to rebellion.
Therefore, if we send troops to Mobei, we must be victorious if we do not do so; if we do do so, we must win.
"Liu Meng, Di Zhongxing, how are the preparations for the military parade going?"
The Qin army suddenly changed the topic from Mobei back to the preparations for the military parade. It seemed abrupt, but if we think about the political significance of this military parade, it is not difficult to understand why the emperor suddenly asked this question.
The prestige of the Qin Dynasty can be gained not only from victories on the battlefield, but also by demonstrating its powerful military force, which can also effectively deter the tribes south of the desert.
"Your Majesty, the preparations are basically complete. We can start as soon as Your Majesty gives the order."
As for when Qin Mu will issue the order to start the military review, the key depends on when the envoys from various countries can arrive. Taking into account the round-trip time, it is not that easy.
Gu Jun'en, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, if you are worried about not having enough time, you might as well ask Commander Ma to gather the leaders of the various tribes in southern Mo to the outside of the border wall and have a drill first."
Qin Mu nodded and said, "This is also a compromise. Let's order Ma Yongzhen to prepare."
He Liang continued, "Your Majesty, I think the Hexi Corridor is the real crisis of our Great Qin. Gushri Khan of the Khoshut tribe has not expressed anything, and this is the most obvious sign. I guess Governor Li's plan to sow discord has not worked. The situation in Hexi is worrying."
The Hexi Corridor is more than 2,000 miles long from east to west, making troop deployment and logistics transportation extremely difficult.
Now both ends are under threat, especially Xining City, a strategic point that is still controlled by Gushri Khan. Once his tens of thousands of troops swoop down to threaten Lanzhou, the strategic channel of the Hexi Corridor will be basically cut off.
Due to the long distance, the news that Sengge and Li Dingguo had fought had not yet been transmitted back to Nanjing, but the changes in the Western Regions have always been a worrying thing. After the Dzungar Khanate annexed the Yarkand Khanate, its strength would surely double, and the threat to the Hexi Corridor would be even greater.
Qin Mu asked Xu Yingjie, "How is the economic and trade development in Hexi?"
"Your Majesty, there has been some progress, but the Western Regions are in the midst of war, and Tibet is still unclear about the enemy, which has caused most merchants to stagnate, so it has a great impact."
Qin Mu's brows furrowed slightly. There were now more than 60,000 troops stationed in the Hexi Corridor, and the pressure on logistics supply was very great. According to the original strategy of relying on border trade to support the border troops, it would be difficult to ease the logistical pressure on the border troops if the trade did not prosper.
... ... .(To be continued...)
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