A three-year tax exemption—such preferential conditions are enough to attract many displaced people!
Chief Secretary Xie quickly understood the reason and explained it to Gu Yuzhi in a low voice.
If Chief Secretary Xie thought it was a good idea, Gu Yuzhi naturally wouldn't have any objections either. He immediately slapped the table with his small hand: "This is feasible. Let's do as Prefect Qi says."
Chief Secretary Xie added, "Prefect Qi, do you have any other methods to significantly increase the population of Xinliang in a short period of time? Besides tenant farmers, Xinliang also needs factories."
The sweet potatoes and potatoes that His Highness had found have already been used by them and tasted quite good. If the harvest is truly good, and they are promoted throughout the Sang Dynasty, it will definitely cause a major shock to the grain prices in the Sang Dynasty.
To promote or sell these two items, a factory is essential.
Xinliang is the closest to Changzhou, and they can't keep robbing people from Changzhou.
Several prefects didn't send anyone during the last bandit suppression, and Chief Secretary Xie has been keeping that in mind ever since.
Prefect Qi circled the matter after it was mentioned: "Your Highness, rest assured, I will make this public when I arrange for people to repair the official road. Chief Secretary Xie just needs to arrange the personnel to receive them."
If nothing unexpected happens, once Xinliang is built and everything is on track, Chief Secretary Xie will naturally become the Prefect of Xinliang. A well-developed Xinliang will be entirely beneficial to Changzhou.
Upon hearing Chief Secretary Xie's words, Prefect Qi smiled and circled the Xinliang Iron Mine on the map: "Have Your Highness and Chief Secretary forgotten that Xinliang has an iron mine?"
Sangchao's punishments were relatively severe. Most of those who committed serious crimes were executed in the autumn, while those who were exiled were mostly people implicated in the crimes. There were quite a few people implicated in the Xinliang Iron Mine.
Prefect Qi was very well prepared: "Your Highness, this is the current list of personnel in Xinliang. There are quite a few people on it who could be released due to the amnesty. However, no one in Xinliang is in charge, so this matter has naturally been delayed."
There are advantages to the delay. All these people's property has been confiscated, and even if they are released, they have nowhere to go. It's better for them to stay with His Highness in Xinliang Construction. At least His Highness will provide them with a place to live.
Speaking of a place to settle down, this is the second thing I need to discuss with Your Highness: "Your Highness, I have another small suggestion. We can attract people from the surrounding prefectures to build in Xinliang, so that they can have a place to live."
“Your Highness should know that there is heavy snow in the northern desert every year. I can hardly guarantee that several prefectures will not suffer from snow disasters again next year. Therefore, if Your Highness is willing to provide these disaster victims with a place to live, I believe that the people will abandon all their concerns and follow Your Highness to settle down in Xinliang.”
Chief Secretary Xie and Gu Yuzhi finally finished reading all the documents handed over by Prefect Qi. These matters came one after another, and Gu Yuzhi was a little overwhelmed for a moment. But when he heard Prefect Qi say that accommodation would be provided, he nodded blankly.
The people in the northern desert have really suffered. They work hard all year but haven't managed to save any food, and they've even lost their houses.
He scratched his head: "But if everyone wants to clear land, who will build the houses?"
Chief Secretary Xie smiled slightly and continued, "Prefect Qi is certainly more familiar with the craftsmen of Changzhou. We'll have to trouble Prefect Qi then."
Prefect Qi...
Although he had originally intended to take on this matter, didn't Xie Changshi's words sound a bit too natural?
Despite saying that, he still had to agree. Prefect Qi nodded with a smile: "Alright, I will have someone notify all the artisans in Changzhou as soon as I get back. His Highness's mansion, the residences of Chief Secretary Xie and others, and the places where the people live—these are all huge projects. These artisans won't have to worry about not having work all year."
When it came to the development of Xinliang, Shu Xiaohan and Wen Xiuzhu were unusually quiet. After all, they were laymen who didn't really understand these local affairs. They had been talking about developing Xinliang, but the bad weather in the northern desert had delayed their efforts. Now, listening to their conversation, they finally felt a sense of relief.
What Gu Yu didn't know was that there was also competition between systems. Wen Shu and the other two were already far behind other systems at the starting point. If they didn't want to fall behind in next year's system evaluation, they would have to make a tremendous effort.
Shu Xiaohan, in particular, wished she could fly out of Gu Yuzhi's mind and teach the local people how to reclaim wasteland...
Gu Yuzhi was completely absorbed in listening to the conversation between Prefect Qi and Chief Secretary Xie, trying to learn how to be a prince of a fiefdom.
After discussing matters such as taxes, housing, and population, Prefect Qi was about to continue when the gatekeeper reported: "Your Highness, Chief Secretary, a man claiming to be the manager of Li's Trading Company has come to see you. He says he wants to borrow the prefectural physician and will pay whatever Your Highness asks."
Chief Secretary Xie wasn't stupid; he quickly thought of Huang Fu and Qian Kang. He sneered, "Go and refuse them. Just say that the prefectural physician went up the mountain to gather herbs."
He was afraid that if he sent the dignified Judge Qin to treat the two merchants, Judge Qin would directly poison them to death!
But didn't Qi Chenglang say he didn't go all out? Why would the manager of Li's Trading Company come looking for them? Is he here to test them?
Chief Secretary Xie subconsciously started overthinking, his squinting eyes making him look like a fox, which gave Prefect Qi, who was standing next to him, goosebumps.
After the gatekeeper left, he asked, "May I ask what happened, Your Highness?"
Gu Yuzhi raised his head, looking proud, and was about to speak when Xie Changshi interrupted, "It's nothing. I'm just wondering why Li Ji has a doctor. Why would he come to our residence to find Judge Qin? Could it be that he's trying to set us up?"
Could Chief Secretary Xie speak of the fact that the guards in the manor were so ignorant and were encouraged by the young prince to put sacks on people? Would he dare to speak of it?
His words successfully misled Prefect Qi, who, upon leaving Wen Prefecture, immediately ordered an investigation into what had happened to Li Ji.
He received the message shortly afterward.
What? Huang Fu and Qian Kang were beaten up inside sacks?
Was it discovered by the person who emptied the chamber pot?
These two pieces of news were more explosive than the last, leaving Prefect Qi completely bewildered.
He finally understood why Li Ji's people were looking for Judge Qin—it was because Judge Qin had saved that man before!
Having learned the whole story, Prefect Qi stopped paying attention to it, as he had more important things to do now.
As for Li Yanping, since he couldn't invite the physician from the Wen family prefecture, he had to go back and have his own doctors do their best, while also sending out messages to ensure that doctors from other prefectural medical clinics would come to treat him.
Meanwhile, at the Wen residence, Gu Yuzhi looked at the uneasy Imperial Physician Qin with his mouth agape as if he could fit an egg in it: "Imperial Physician Qin, are you... are you telling the truth?"
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