Chapter 156: Short of Money
In Youzhou, when Tian Ze received the news that Gan Ning requested for additional money, food and ships, he was amazed when he learned about Gan Ning's bold operations in the Yangtze River area.
Zang Ba and Gan Ning, these two weirdos, can really bring surprises to me and can come up with so many tricks.
How could he not see the ingenuity of Gan Ning's plan? It could almost be said that each step was linked to the next, and it was all an open conspiracy.
When Liu Biao wanted to use Gan Ning and allowed him to enter Jingzhou, the next things happened naturally.
Gan Ning was a natural bandit leader and pyramid scheme leader. In just half a year, he had actually developed the entire South into his own subordinates by himself.
Even Tian Ze could not think of a good solution for the time being, unless Gan Ning was killed, Tian Ze's money and food were used up, or the Yangtze River waterway or sea route was completely blocked.
It seems that only the first one is still feasible, the latter two are basically unrealistic.
Not to mention the money, food and sea routes, it was unclear whether Liu Yao would allow Liu Biao to enter Yangzhou, and Tian Ze's strength would not allow such a thing to happen.
To block the Yangtze River waterway, even if Liu Biao is willing to spend a lot of effort, a large army, and huge amounts of money and food, the noble families who have tasted the sweetness will not be willing to do so.
Jingzhou belongs to the aristocratic family, not to you, Liu Biao.
For the sake of the aristocratic Jingzhou, the common people and you, the governor, will have to suffer a little longer.
Success is due to the family, and failure is also due to the family!
"Give it!" Tian Ze wrote with a big stroke of his pen.
"Give Xingba all the money, food, and warships he wants. Send him more men, assign Zhou Tai to him as well, and give him the seal of General Zhechou."
"Tell the shipyard to speed up the construction of the transport ship, and arrange for Han Dang, Ling Cao, and Jiang Qin to go to Donglai as soon as possible."
"Ling Cao is responsible for the transportation of people between Donglai and Liaodong, Jiang Qin is responsible for the transportation of people between Donglai and the Yangtze River, and Han Dang is responsible for guarding Donglai and being ready to respond to emergencies at any time."
"Tell Xingba to work hard and put stability first. He must not take any risks. I have prepared a position for him as the Admiral of the Navy!"
The key to this matter lies in Gan Ning. Although changing someone else may be able to maintain the situation now, it is not safe. Gan Ning is still the most suitable person.
Gan Ning did a great job. Tian Ze felt that if he did it well, it would not be impossible to dig out half of the population from the south within two years.
Although Tian Ze shouted with full confidence, he was still a little nervous about the current situation under his rule.
His appetite has grown now, and he no longer takes small fights seriously.
According to his idea, at least 300,000 or 400,000 people would have to be transported from the south every month.
This seems almost like a fantasy to ordinary people.
Because this means thousands of ships, no less than hundreds of thousands of naval forces, huge supplies of materials, money and food, and tens of thousands of logistics support and management personnel.
But for Tian Ze, although the challenge is great, it is not impossible.
Despite having experienced two major projects, the Yellow Turban Rebellion and the Northeast Plains cleanup, there will still be great difficulties.
"Gongtai, Zhongde, population is the first priority. The resources under our rule must be used first to protect Xingba. Can you hold on?" Tian Ze looked at Chen Gong and Cheng Yu, his tone full of disbelief.
Chen Gong and Cheng Yu looked solemn and started to make calculations in their minds.
Cheng Yu said: "My Lord, if you want to ensure the transportation of the southern population, I am afraid you will need at least 100,000 naval forces, plus the newly expanded new army to support it."
"Although most of them are new soldiers and their combat effectiveness is slightly insufficient, there is not much problem in transporting people."
"Because they are a navy, the logistical pressure is relatively not that great, but it would be better to transfer Guan Hai. If Guan Hai's 50,000 baggage soldiers can join, the pressure will be less, after all, the population is really too large."
"But I'm afraid that the war will be greatly affected in the future."
Tian Ze frowned when he heard this: "How is our force distribution now?"
"Except for Youzhou, the defense of the remaining states, the Northeast Plain and the Great Xianbei Mountains is guarded by nearly 10 troops." "Youzhou is guarded by Xu Rong with 5 troops. In the direction of Jizhou, a little more troops are added, Guan Yu and Xu Huang each lead 3 troops to garrison, and Zang Ba leads 2 troops in the Taihang Mountains."
"If we remove these 15 troops, our remaining mobile forces will only be a little over 10."
"But if we go south, we can mobilize some of Guan Yu and Xu Huang's troops, and barely gather 15 troops. I'm afraid it's not enough to deal with Yuan Benchu."
Tian Ze frowned slightly when he heard this.
50 troops may seem like a lot, but with such a large territory, if you divide it up randomly, nearly half of them will be gone.
If they were to continue supporting the needs of the South, there would only be more than 100,000 soldiers left.
His geographical location is already superior, but it is still like this. It is conceivable why the princes in the Central Plains kept increasing their troops and had their homes stolen in various ways.
Cao Cao was especially fierce, and his home was robbed countless times. He faced constant internal and external troubles and was basically dancing on the edge of a knife.
Despite being in a situation where there would be no return if one is not careful, he has persisted. This is not only a matter of ability, but also a sign of destiny.
On the contrary, after so many years of stable development, stabilizing Hebei and reconciling the barbarians, Yuan Shao, who was as stable as a mountain, finally collapsed. If you don't know this history, it would be hard for anyone to imagine.
"10 troops are enough. Now we have to develop the Northeast Plain and attract people from the south. We will not be able to expand outward for at least one or two years. We still have to focus on development. At most, when the time is right, we can try to take Bingzhou."
Tian Ze understood the hidden meaning of Cheng Yu, but it was impossible to expand the army further.
The war in the Northeast Plain subsided, and everyone thought they had gotten rid of a big burden, but they didn't expect Gan Ning to do so well in the south, which led to a bigger burden.
Coupled with the development of the Northeast Plain, the Ministry of Finance's money and grain will inevitably run out, and it would be good enough if Chen Gong could hold on.
"Gongtai, what about you here?" Tian Ze looked at Chen Gong with concern.
Chen Gong was calculating the accounts with a worried look on his face, but he felt that he just couldn't figure it out.
Obviously, the area under their rule is so rich, but Tian Ze always gives such unimaginable tasks, and he, the "money bag", is always terrified.
"My Lord, in order to ensure the war in the Northeast Plain over the past two years, the money and grain in the Ministry of Finance has been running low, and we have spent a small part of the money and grain accumulated in previous years."
"If we want to ensure that Xingba can attract refugees, the limit is 50 refugees per month. Add to that the development of the Northeast Plain, and I'm afraid the remaining inventory can only last for two to three years."
"If there is another large-scale war, I'm afraid it will only last for one or two years."
"That's enough!" Tian Ze felt relieved when he heard Chen Gong say that.
Ever since he had deeply experienced Tian Ze's lavish spending, Chen Gong had already developed the same "thrifty" habits as Tian Zhong.
The reported data are all given room to ensure that there is a certain amount of "funding" to guarantee the normal operation of the administration.
Chen Gong's statement of maintaining it for two to three years definitely took into account many special circumstances and calculated the expenditure at the highest level.
There was no way, he was Tian Ze's "money bag". Liaodong had never stopped various projects and water conservancy construction, and corvée labor was abolished, so tens of millions of dollars were spent every day, and no matter how much money he had, it was not easy to spend.
Each department wanted to do its best, but doing things cost money! If the departments followed their plans, they would spend more than they earned every year, so every time they reviewed the budget, they had to spend a lot of time calculating and estimating.
He slashed the budgets of various ministries every time, and at most only half of the budget was retained. He had a lot of headaches in order to maintain a balance between work and income and expenditure.
As soon as Tian Ze said this, Chen Gong sighed helplessly.
It seems that there is no hope of saving more money and food in the next two years.
The Ministry of Finance only has outflows and no income, so how can he, the Minister of Finance, do his job?
As if seeing Chen Gong's troubles, Tian Ze smiled slightly and glanced at Mi Zhu beside him: "Zi Zhong, if we want to make money, we have to rely on you."
(End of this chapter)
