Imperial city.
Emperor Wen summoned Xiao Wanchou, Xue Che and Xu Shifu to his own bedroom.
Emperor Wen has been in a bad mood recently.
The floods in the south and the unrest among the tribes in the western desert became a huge stone weighing on Emperor Wen's heart.
He had already handed over the matter of the flood in the south to Prince Yun Li to deal with.
Xu Shifu is the Minister of Revenue, so it is most appropriate to let Yun Li handle this matter.
However, the unusual movements of the tribes in western Mo made Emperor Wen feel pressured.
"If the tribes of Moxi join forces to send troops, how many troops do you think they will have?"
Emperor Wen questioned the three people.
Xiao Wanchou thought for a moment and replied, "I think the number will probably not be less than 300,000, and it may even reach 400,000 or 500,000!"
...
...
The tribes west of the desert were not one country, but more than ten tribes of varying sizes.
However, the tribes in western Moxi share the same ancestry and all of them practice slavery.
There may be conflicts and contradictions between the tribes, but more often they are allies.
Six years ago, each of the tribes in western Mo could send out an army of 200,000.
Over the years, under the suppression of the most powerful Western Qiang and Hun Gu, no major wars have occurred among the tribes west of the desert, and their military strength is certainly greater than before.
Three hundred thousand troops should be considered a relatively conservative number.
If the various tribes could draw a large number of slaves to form a slave army, it would be possible to form an army of 600,000!
"My judgment is similar to that of Duke Yu."
Xue Che nodded.
"So much?"
The already troublesome problem has become even more troublesome. "Compared with the tribes in western Moxi, our military strength is still not superior!"
Even if 100,000 troops were transferred from Fuzhou, there would only be 200,000 troops on the Liaozhou and Liangzhou fronts.
"The difference in military strength is secondary."
Xue Che said: "In terms of elite strength, the armies of the western desert tribes are definitely not as good as ours! With an army of 200,000, it shouldn't be a problem to defend against the western desert tribes! What I am worried about now is that my dynasty does not have enough money and food..."
Speaking of money and grain, the three of them looked at Xu Shifu, the Minister of Revenue.
Facing the gazes of the three people, Xu Shifu couldn't help but feel a headache.
After thinking for a moment, Xu Shifu said, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid that the money and food of our dynasty will not be able to sustain it for a long time. I suggest that we should mainly negotiate with the tribes in the western desert..."
"Peace talks?"
Upon hearing what Xu Shifu said, Xiao Wanchou's face suddenly fell. "When we were fighting against Beihuan, you, Xu Shifu, also strongly advocated peace talks. What was the result? We gave away all the food, but did Beihuan make peace? In the end, didn't we still have to rely on the Sixth Prince to lead the Northern Palace Army to force Beihuan to surrender?"
Xiao Wanchou was the most staunch advocate of war in the Dagan Dynasty.
No matter which country attacks, Xiao Wanchou always advocates war!
"One time, another time!"
Xu Shifu said angrily: "From the beginning of winter last year to now, our dynasty first went to war with Beihuan, then Prince An rebelled, and now there is a flood in the south. Do you know how much money and grain our dynasty has consumed?"
Although the imperial court did not send many troops in the war against Beihuan, the cost to the court was not small.
The food and fodder that Bei Huan robbed and given to Yun Zheng alone amounted to six million dan!
This does not include the supplies the imperial court provided to the Northern Army before Yun Zheng seized power.
Later, Prince An's rebellion cost a lot of money and grain.
Today, the south is suffering from severe floods, and the imperial court has to open government warehouses in the south to provide disaster relief.
Last year, the weather was good and the tax revenue was 30 million dan.
It sounds like a lot.
But when it comes to real consumption, I can’t bear it at all!
Without enough money and food, how can we go to war with the tribes in western Mo?
After hearing what Xu Shifu said, Xiao Wanchou suddenly stopped talking.
Although Xiao Wanchou disliked Xu Shifu, he also admitted what Xu Shifu said was true.
These major events indeed consumed a lot of money and grain for Dagan.
However, when it came to peace talks with the tribes in western Moxi, Xiao Wanchou was the first to jump up and oppose it.
Emperor Wen pondered for a while, and then asked Xu Shifu: "If we use troops against the tribes in the west of the desert, how long can the current money and food of the court sustain the 200,000 troops in the northwest?"
Xu Shifu thought for a moment and replied, "About eight months."
Under the current circumstances, it is almost unrealistic to mobilize grain from government warehouses in the south and transport it to the northwest as military rations.
All the grain in the government warehouses in the south is to be used for disaster relief!
It’s good enough that the southern provinces and counties don’t ask the imperial court for food!
The key issue is that the imperial court must also be prepared to deal with a large-scale plague outbreak in the south.
A flood plus a large-scale plague were enough to severely damage Daqian's vitality.
"How much tax grain can be collected this year?" Emperor Wen asked again.
Xu Shifu: "I'm afraid it's less than half of last year..."
The tax grain from the summer harvest has actually begun to be stored in warehouses.
The tax grain harvested in summer is actually very limited.
The bulk of the tax grain is collected after the autumn harvest.
Xiao Wanchou frowned and asked unhappily, "Why is it only this much?"
"How many do you think there are?"
Xu Shifu snorted coldly: "The south has suffered a large-scale flood. This year's tax grain from the south can basically be ignored! Shuobei is now governed by His Highness the Sixth Prince. Can the tax grain from Shuobei still be counted towards the imperial court?"
If we remove the tax grain from the south and north, how much tax grain will be left?
The key point is that not only did the southern regions not collect much tax grain, but the imperial court also had to continue to mobilize tax grain from other places and send it to the southern government warehouses for disaster relief.
Just transporting the tax grain from other places to the south would consume a lot of food for the people and horses along the way.
Listening to Xu Shifu calculating the details here, Emperor Wen suddenly had an even greater headache.
If the war with the tribes in western Mo was short-lived, there would be no problem.
But if the war lasts too long, the imperial court may not be able to sustain it with its financial resources!
The more Emperor Wen thought about it, the angrier he became.
Damn those tribes in western Mo!
If you make me angry, I will just throw this rebellious son, Lao Liu, to the northwest!
No matter how powerful the tribes in western Mo are, can they be stronger than the Northern Huan?
Emperor Wen thought viciously in his heart.
At this moment, Emperor Wen remembered what Yun Zheng had said to him on the gate tower of Beilu Pass.
As long as you give him enough trust, he will make sure that there will be no strong, big or enemy countries around us!
Just when Emperor Wen was having a headache, a close attendant suddenly came to report that Mu Shun had already left Shuobei and sent someone to deliver a letter to Emperor Wen.
As he spoke, the attendant respectfully presented the letter that Mu Shun had sent back.
Emperor Wen quickly took the letter and opened it.
Looking at the contents of the letter, Emperor Wen's expression suddenly became even uglier.
It seems that we can’t rely on this rebellious son, Lao Liu, for the time being!
"Look at them all!"
Emperor Wen handed Yun Zheng's letter to Xiao Wanchou and the other two.
The three of them quickly gathered together to check.
Mu Shun received news from Shuobei that Guifang, Dayue Kingdom and Qiuchi are likely to unite to attack Beihuan and Muma Grassland!
Yun Zheng judged that if this matter was confirmed, the possibility of the various tribes in western Mo launching a major attack would be greater.
It can almost be said to be inevitable!
"Your Highness the Sixth Prince's judgment should be correct."
Xue Che frowned, "Your Majesty, we must be prepared for both situations!"
Fight, how to fight?
How can we make peace?
If we fight a war, we must fight it quickly and decisively, and not drag it out too long.
But if they wanted to make peace, they would certainly be blackmailed by the tribes in western Mo.
Whether it is war or peace, we must plan ahead.
Fortunately, they still have some time now, unlike last year when Beihuan asked for food.
Emperor Wen said nothing, but just thought silently, secretly cursing Yun Zheng, the rebellious son, in his heart.
This rebellious son!
He believed that the tribes in western Mo were very likely to launch a large-scale attack on Dagan, and they did not know how to help him think of countermeasures or relieve his worries.
What? Do you want me to send someone to ask him for advice?
Does this rebellious son still want to blackmail the imperial court?
Next time I see him, I will definitely give him a good beating...
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