Chapter 287 Send troops?
As soon as Jiang Tangtang returned to Qiongzhou, a group of staff members from the General Staff Office came to her. Jiang Tangtang handed the task of identifying the assassin to Yuan San and held a small meeting with the staff members from the General Staff Office first.
Too many things have happened recently, and there are still many things that need to be assigned to the people in the General Staff Office.
As soon as he sat down, Wen Min couldn't wait to ask, "Madam, what are you going to do with these noble families?"
Jiang Tangtang said, "Of course we will deal with it according to the law. We will do what needs to be done."
"Madam, should we first discuss with the general about sending troops to attack the Western Rong and conquer the land of Great Zhou?"
Wen Minshun felt that now that he had dealt with so many aristocratic families, it would be impossible to take over the entire Great Zhou with gentle means. It would be better to use the excuse of conquering the Great Zhou's rivers and mountains to send troops to seize the world.
Even though the Lu family is popular now, the power of the major families should not be underestimated. If they are severely offended, they will surely counterattack with all their might.
Qin Chi agreed, "Madam, Lord Wen is right. Starting a war at this time is difficult for us, but it's not easy for them either."
Moreover, Lingnan's military grain reserves were far greater than any other country's at present. A few years ago, while Lu Shili was doing business abroad, he had been diligently purchasing and stockpiling grain. Lingnan had enjoyed two consecutive years of bumper harvests.
Even now, Lingnan is better than other places.
Lingnan had fish meal as a reserve, as well as some drought-resistant grain varieties, to prevent the people from starving to death.
According to the information he received, many places outside have already started to exchange children for food.
Qin Chi told Jiang Tangtang what he had gathered outside, and added, "Right now, not only are the people outside lacking food and drink, but even the army is short of food and water. The Western Rong have been fighting the Great Zhou for two years and are already exhausted, while we have been conserving our energy for the past two years."
Jiang Tangtang and Lu Shiyan had been keeping their troops on hold, concentrating on governing Lingnan and strengthening their military forces. They did not send out any troops, just waiting for an opportunity.
They did not want to be branded as a rebel, causing chaos in the world and being hated by the people.
And now, the external conditions have indeed met the requirements.
But internally, the situation is not optimistic.
The military food reserves currently in Lingnan can only supply short-term warfare. If a protracted war is fought like the Great Zhou and the Western Rong, it will also be dragged down.
She was not sure whether with their current military strength they could capture the Great Zhou and defeat the Western Rong in one fell swoop.
Jiang Tangtang pursed her lips and thought for a moment before saying, "We'll discuss the specifics after the general returns. Let's first discuss how we can address military needs if war breaks out. If the drought continues, in addition to military supplies like food, armor, and weapons, I think we also need to consider another important issue: how to obtain water."
Lu Shiyan led his troops to sprint in the front, and they had to take good care of the logistics. Only when there was no shortage of food and military supplies could they fight in the front with peace of mind.
The people in the General Staff Office understood this principle without Jiang Tangtang explaining it.
But even though they understood the situation, they really had no way to deal with natural disasters like drought.
"I have thought of a way to get water, but it can only take a small amount of water and cannot supply water on a large scale." Jiang Tangtang took out the drawings he had drawn while staying up late to read books these past few nights.
She pointed to the blueprint and explained to the staff, "Fill this container with seawater and heat it from below. The heated water vapor will enter the other bottle. Because of the temperature difference between the two sides and the sealed environment, the water vapor without salt will be collected in the other bottle."
The staff's eyes lit up, and they once again looked at Jiang Tangtang with eyes of worship and awe, as if they were looking at a god. "Madam, you are so talented! This invention is brilliant!"
Jiang Tangtang ignored their adoring and awe-inspiring looks and poured cold water on them, saying, "This is just a theory. It hasn't been tested yet. There might be problems along the way, and it may not work. Don't get too excited too soon. Besides, even if it does work, the amount of water you can get is limited, and it's also time-consuming and laborious."
Wen Minshun said repeatedly, "No, no, no, Madam, you are very talented. It's amazing that you can come up with such a way to get water. We will find someone to test it out. If it works, we will ask the blacksmith to make a few more jars to make water."
Qin Chi also said, "Madam, you don't know that many people outside are dying of thirst. With this water-making jar, we won't be driven to death by drought."
Whenever he heard news from outside, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart, fortunately he had a wife in Lingnan.
If it weren't for the lady organizing people to dig wells and find water in various drought-stricken areas to solve the drinking water problem for the local people, Lingnan would have been in chaos long ago.
Jiang Tangtang said, "If this fresh water extractor can be made, it should be possible to kill two birds with one stone. One tank of salt and one tank of water."
Qin Chi volunteered to take on this task.
There was a drought this year and harvests were poor everywhere, but the salt fields managed by Qin Chi and Zhan Hongyuan had a bumper harvest.
Now the salt fields managed by the two have long been on the right track, and the salt reserves are enough for the entire Lingnan population to use for ten years.
If it weren't for the drought, disasters everywhere, and frequent changes among countries, this salt could have been exchanged for countless grains and livestock for Lingnan.
But now, the business plan has to be put on hold temporarily.
After all, there were droughts everywhere, and people in many places were dying of thirst and thirst. Who would buy salt?
The two salt fields in Lingnan have not yet found a way to extract refined salt, and crude salt has little market among the nobles.
But he was optimistic, thinking that this was only temporary. When the disaster eased, salt could be exchanged for a large amount of gold and silver.
The salt produced by their salt fields also played a significant role in the drought. Due to the drought, many farmers had to abandon their pigs and sheep and send them to the government.
These pigs and sheep were adopted by the people on credit under the organization of the government at that time.
It was agreed that when the pigs and sheep grew up, they could sell them themselves and return the money for the piglets to the government. Or they could send them to the government, which would purchase them and, after deducting the money for the piglets, pay the remaining weight at the market price.
There was a drought this year, and livestock were difficult to sell, so many families sent them to the government.
The government couldn't break its promise to the people, so everything was carried out according to the original documents. But what should be done with so many pigs and sheep?
Because of the drought, the farms cannot raise so many fish at once, and sales are also affected by the drought, resulting in a sluggish market.
In the end, they listened to Jiang Tangtang and killed the animals that could not be raised and preserved them by salting them into bacon.
This is also a supply to combat drought.
In addition, some fish caught from the sea are also preserved with salt.
Qin Chi doesn't mind having too much salt in the salt field.
It would be great if we could get both fresh water and salt.
Jiang Tangtang flipped through the notebook in her hand and talked to the people in the General Staff Office about the talent selection for various departments in October.
The more drought and difficulties there are, the more obvious the lack of talent in Lingnan becomes, and this matter cannot be postponed any longer.
On the other hand, the fact that Cui Jun and other aristocratic families were surrounded by the army also caused an uproar in Lingnan.
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