"Li Qiang, you are really generous this time. Two hundred thousand acres of grassland for one person. This is a huge amount. In the entire northwest, there are not many wealthy families that can own two hundred thousand acres of grassland on the Gulang grassland this time. Even since the founding of the Han Empire, the most fertile land awarded to meritorious officials has never exceeded 50,000 acres..."
As the lights came on, in the study of the Prince of Pingxi's mansion, Lei Sitong felt a little pained when he thought of the lavish gifts Yan Liqiang had given to several governors today.
Yan Liqiang smiled and shook his head. "It's all worth it. Uncle Lei, you only saw the grassland and fields I gave them, but you didn't think about what they could give me after getting the grassland and fields. This deal, I didn't lose anything..."
"Each of them has 200,000 acres of grassland. How can they give anything to you, Li Qiang?" Lei Sitong asked curiously.
"Of course they gave me something, and a lot, at least three things..."
"There are three more?"
"Of course, when I proposed the integration of the Northwest, the first thing is to form a unified market in the Northwest. This is the basis for the integration of the Northwest..." Seeing the puzzled look on Lei Sitong's face, Yan Liqiang remembered some of the terms he had mentioned, which might be difficult for Lei Sitong to understand. "Ahem... ahem, maybe it's a little hard for Uncle Lei to understand when I said market, then I'll change to something that Uncle Lei can understand. The premise and basis for the integration of the Northwest must be that merchants and goods in the six states of the Northwest can circulate freely in the six states of the Northwest, just as conveniently as circulating in a county, so that everyone can easily do business and make money, turning the entire Northwest into a big bazaar. With the current situation in the six states of the Northwest, there are countless checkpoints and customs duties in various states. A cart of wool has to pay customs duties several times from Ganzhou to Yinzhou, and the price has increased a lot invisibly. This is greatly detrimental to the development of industry and commerce. Of course, I can also intervene and order them to The states have cancelled customs and customs duties, but this kind of thing that cuts off people's money is the most difficult to do. Even if I have a large army, I can't do everything. I have policies and they have countermeasures. It's impossible to implement this kind of thing completely if I rely on one person and one order. In the end, it will only be superficial. However, if they themselves become stakeholders, it will be much simpler. Uncle Lei, think about it, if they become the big landlords of Gulang Grassland, they themselves want to make a fortune from wool, and their wool and wool products have to be transported to various states and counties through Ganzhou, will they be willing to use the money they are going to earn to pay customs duties..."
"Of course not. Even I don't want to!" Lei Sitong said bluntly.
"That's it. We must make them feel the pain. Only then will they have the motivation and determination to cancel the checkpoints and customs duties in various states and counties, and only then will they really take measures to solve this problem. The officials under the states and counties will not dare to pluck the hair on the head of the governor. Only then can this matter be truly done. Now that the wool-based processing industry and commerce in the six northwestern states are in their infancy, the Gulang grassland has been occupied by us, and the problem of the origin of wool has been solved. We are no longer subject to the seven tribes of Shatu. At this time, once the six northwestern states form a unified large market, the cost of logistics will be greatly reduced. The wool-based industrial and commercial trade in the entire northwest will usher in a blowout in the future, which will drive the development of various industries in the northwest and attract a large amount of labor, capital, and technology to settle in this industry. This is an opportunity for the rise of the entire northwest. With wool trade as a link, in the future, the six states in the northwest, from officials such as governors and county governors and wealthy families to peddlers and ordinary people, will prosper and suffer together in the matter of wool, and people's hearts will be together. This is the foundation of the unity of the northwest. With this foundation, the six states in the northwest can be completely twisted into one and used by me..."
"So this is the true unity of the Northwest!" Lei Sitong was stunned for a while, then he let out a long breath, "So this is one thing, what are the other two?"
"The second thing is naturally people's hearts. Uncle Lei, there is no need to say much about the relationship between you and me, but Gu Tong'an and the others were forced to listen to me before. Like Lin Zitong, they came to Qiyun County because of the situation. They can become governors of a state. Regardless of their character, their means and abilities are naturally not bad, and they have roots and confidants in each state. For the stability of the overall situation in the northwest, not only can I not touch them now, but I must make them work for me wholeheartedly. These 200,000 acres of meritorious fields and grasslands are for their hearts. I must use both kindness and force to make them completely submit to me and no longer have any second thoughts. These people originally had no ambition to be king and dominate. If it weren't for the current bad situation of the Han Empire and the great changes it encountered, none of these people would dare to jump up. I now want them to be their governors honestly and let them know that under my command, if they cross the line, they will be crushed to pieces and their families will be destroyed, but if they work diligently, their wives and children will be rich and prosperous. They are all smart people and will naturally make a choice!"
"Yes, that's the truth. What about the third one?"
"Uncle Lei, you now have 200,000 acres of grassland. What are your plans?"
Lei Sitong burst into laughter. "Hahaha, Li Qiang, don't try to trick me. I am not an out-of-touch person, and I will not be bothered by the money I have. The wool business is so profitable, and the supply is in short supply. Since I have such a large grassland, I will find my family to take care of it. I will set up a large ranch in Gulang Grassland and raise hundreds of thousands of cattle and sheep. I am still worried about where to find so many people..."
"Uncle Lei, do you spend money on this?"
Lei Sitong stroked his beard and said, "Of course I have to spend money, and a lot of money. If my Lei family didn't have some savings, I might have to ask you, Li Qiang, to borrow money this time..."
"Since you, Uncle Lei, think so, the other five governors must be thinking the same thing. This is meat in your mouth, so why not eat it? To run a large ranch of 200,000 acres of grassland, it costs a lot of money to build new facilities, recruit people, and buy cattle, sheep, and horses. Uncle Lei, you spend a lot of money on the Gulang grassland, and a lot of this money will become taxes for Qiyun County, which will prosper the place. And because you, Uncle Lei, are governors, your every move is highly watched and important. Many people are watching you. When those people see that you also have a large grassland in the Gulang grassland and that you are also preparing to do a big job on the Gulang grassland, they will naturally have no worries and can let go..."
"It's a good thing that you don't do business, otherwise who in this world can beat you? Hearing what you said, it's obviously you who gave us so much pasture, but it seems like you got a huge advantage..."
"This is the principle of not letting go, but letting go brings more. If you really want to do great things, you will never be able to do it if you only think about yourself..."
"Today, the governors of all states have unanimously agreed to establish the Northwest Army and the Northwest Camp. I wonder where you, Li Qiang, plan to build the Northwest Camp? How will you arrange the number of people and the commanders? Will the organization also follow the one that the Dragon Tooth Army is currently reorganizing?"
"The Northwest Camp should be built in the east of the six states in the northwest, but not too far east, otherwise it will scare our neighbors!" At this point, Yan Liqiang and Lei Sitong smiled at each other, "As for the number of people in the Northwest Army, my initial idea is to select 50,000 elite soldiers from each state to join. Uncle Lei, you will be the deputy commander of the Northwest Army, and I will personally be the commander of the Northwest Army. As for the organization of the Northwest Army, of course, it must be aligned with the Longya Army. It must be reorganized after being disbanded. Except for a few positions that will be decided by me, the vast majority of the generals and officers in the 300,000 Northwest Army this time will be openly selected from the soldiers of each state regardless of their qualifications and background, so that those with ability can fully realize their ambitions in the Northwest Army..."
Upon hearing Yan Liqiang's arrangement, Lei Sitong took a deep breath...
…
After the two discussed some things, Lei Sitong did not stay in the Pingxi Palace for long and left after just one hour.
After Lei Sitong left, Yan Liqiang also returned from the study to his own place. However, just as he returned to his room, his nose twitched. After letting the guards around him leave, he smiled at the empty room, "Ruxue, we meet again..."
A figure flashed before Yan Liqiang's eyes. Hua Ruxue, who was wearing a blue dress and more beautiful than a flower, was standing in front of him. She looked at Yan Liqiang with an indescribable look and sighed softly, "I should call you Your Highness now..."
(End of this chapter)