In recent years, the commercial development of Hequ Road has been very fast, especially Shengzhou, because it is at the point of rushing, it is the gateway to the Central Plains, and it is particularly prosperous. The radish is fast and does not wash the mud, and Du Zhongxiao was in the Western Regions last year, and chaos was born for a while. The most typical is smuggling.

After investigation, in addition to smuggling flame nitrate, sulfur, and even weapons to the party, other prohibited items are not to be discussed. In addition to the party, there are also smuggling to the Khitan, and even affecting the war of Yelu Chongyuan and Hongji in the front, which has formed a network.

Shengzhou is an emerging city, and it is not too difficult to seriously track down, so it will be checked in three or five days. The official of the curtain Cao has been reviewed, and Du Zhongxiao has seen it, and there is no major objection. The death penalty is directly carried out below, and several death sentences are performed in the imperial court according to the rules.

In the following days, Du Zhongxiao reorganized the business of Hequ Road, especially the monopoly of prohibited items. Except for a few special shops, all prohibited items are included in the shopping mall system, and when a certain number is reached, it is reported to the government for approval. A military camp was set up in the city, and together with the military camps outside the city, the entry and exit of the soldiers were strictly controlled. Ordnance management is carried out vertically from the receiving battalion level and from the headquarters downwards.

After being busy for nearly ten days, he finally figured out a system, and Du Zhongxiao felt too tired to do it. After finishing his work, Du Zhongxiao set up a banquet in the mansion and invited several officials to reward them for their hard work these days.

It's the middle of June, and it's hot during the day, but as soon as the sun sets, it cools down. The weather here on Hequ Road is like this, no matter how hot it is, as long as there is no sun in the sky, it will be cool and pleasant.

Chen Xiliang and several officials entered the back office, thanked Du Zhongxiao, and sat down separately. The ministers of Hequ Road have plenty of money, not to mention that Du Zhongxiao also has a generous amount of money for the ministers, and these banquets do not need to be paid out of their own pockets, and they don't know what they are thankful for.

There was a stove next to it, and a few soldiers roasted meat there, and everyone sat down and brought it up.

Du Zhongxiao said: "Now that the weather is cooling, you should drink a glass of wine and use some meat to get rid of dryness." ”

After everyone drank wine and ate meat for a while, Chen Xiliang said: "I heard that the festival commander is going back to Beijing, I don't know who came to Hequ Road?" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Haven't you heard? It seems that Captain Han is coming. However, after a few of you have passed this term, most of you will be transferred elsewhere, and you don't have to think about it. If you are young, you can go to the Western Regions for another term, which will be of great benefit to your career in the future. ”

Chen Xiliang said: "Hequ Road for three years, family members can't be with you, everyone has been on the frontier enough, which one wants to be re-appointed?" It's better to return to the Central Plains and reunite with your family, as if you are suffering here. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Speaking of which, in the border area, family members are not allowed to take up the post, and the commission is really harmful." And then there is the discount, with this article, many people are reluctant to come. The imperial court has issued an edict that those who are willing to serve in the Western Regions can also reduce the grind and survey for a two-year term. ”

Several people shook their heads, but they didn't want to go. In the past three years, Hequ Road has already had a discount, so why bother to go to the Western Regions again. These marginal lands are suitable for one term, and no matter how much they are unwilling. In fact, it is difficult to send officials to the counties below the Hequ Road, but there are railways, and the resistance is not so fierce.

This is a common problem, and Du Zhongxiao has no choice but to divert the topic and talk about other easy things.

Dai Zhuang said: "In the first two years, there was only a shortage of people here on Hequ Road, and everything was not easy to do. Since last year, the number of merchants in the city has increased, and it has begun to flourish. I heard that this year's commercial tax has exceeded that of many mainland state capitals, and a few days ago, the Chinese book also came to praise it in an official document. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "That's nature. We are the gateway to the Central Plains from the north, not to mention that the Western Regions are so far away, that is, the surrounding livestock skins, how much of them have to be sold to the capital every year? If you manage it well, this should be a rich place. ”

Wen Tong shook his head: "There are not many households around now, and the reclaimed fields are not even enough food for local households, so it is not a rich land." Only when there are more households and more fields can we say that we will be rich. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Not really. Because it is located on a transportation artery, although there is not enough food, it can be transported from outside. As long as the commercial tax collected can make up for the money to buy grain, and if there is surplus, it can be called rich. ”

Several people became interested and discussed with great interest what it means to be rich. At present, the fields reclaimed in Shengzhou are only around the city, and if the garrison is counted, it is not enough for the locals to eat, and it is necessary to transfer grain from the Central Plains. However, the location is on the main transportation road, and it is the gateway to the Central Plains from the northwest. In this sense, it can be regarded as wealthy.

Du Zhongxiao said: "Now the world is different, there is money and no money, because the railway can transfer grain on a large scale, and the impact of grain is much smaller." Have you noticed that in the past, all the rice that was sent was Chen rice? Now, which of us will eat stale rice? It's nothing more than that after the rice is sent, it is handed over to the shop to be sold, and then it is used to buy new rice to eat. If we can do this, it is because of the railway, it is much easier to transport grain throughout the country. In the past, rice was transported by the river, and even if it arrived, it was also old rice. Now with the railway, you can eat new rice. ”

Chen Xiliang nodded: "What the marshal said is good. I have been an official for many years, and it has been really a matter of the past two years that I have eaten old rice for dinner. In the past, it was difficult to buy new rice on the street without saying the price, but now it is available in every shop. ”

Wen Tongdao: "It's true, with the railway, the products of many places can be transported. In the past, it was worthless if it could not be shipped locally, but now it can be sold for money. At present, many fruits in Shengshi are transported from the Central Plains and Jiangnan. ”

The impact of railways on society is really multifaceted. Du Zhongxiao was accustomed to it in his previous life, and when the new railway came out two years ago, he didn't think too deeply. In the past two years, especially the successful acquisition of the Western Regions, I have felt much deeper. To be honest, the railways of this era cannot be compared with Du Zhongxiao's previous life, with much smaller capacity and much slower speed. This is enough to change the situation both domestically and internationally.

In the past, when there was no railway, the distance was long, and if there was no water transport, there was a balance between capacity and freight. Too far away, transporting food is often mostly eaten on the road. Just as in the past, there were only 10,000 or 20,000 people on Linfu Road, but more than 20 states on Hedong Road were required to supply grain and grass, and the price of grain in Fuzhou was ten times that of other state armies. Now that there is a railway, even if the grain is transferred from the south of the Yangtze River, the freight on the road will not be so high.

The railway directly changed the layout of the whole country, and with the control of the Song Dynasty government, the national market centered on the Central Plains began to slowly take shape. This market alone has increased its revenue even higher than the previous national fiscal revenue. In addition to a large number of government-run industries and commerce, the central government's finances have grown very rapidly in the past two years. It's just that because the system can't keep up, many can't be shown on the surface.

Just like Du Zhongxiao took the Western Regions, if there is no railway, I don't know how many materials will be consumed. Now that there are railways, it only depends on where the railways lead. Even if the conditions of that railway were very poor, it was only a single-track railway, and it was enough to crush all the countries in the Western Regions.

A few people drank wine and talked about the changes brought about by the railway. In the past two years, not many railways have been built in the mainland, and the limited production capacity has been used in the frontiers. In addition to Du Zhongxiao's repair to the Western Regions, Hebei Road was also repaired to the border, and Shaanxi Road was repaired to Yanzhou in addition to Zhenrong Army.

The grim situation that the party is facing now is actually that several railways in the south and north of the Song Dynasty have been built to its borders. With the backing of these railways, the Song army could not only concentrate a large army, but also fight for a long time, beyond the party's ability to resist. The same is true for the Khitan, Hebei Road has built the railway to the border, Hedong Road to Daizhou, and Hequ Road to Shazhou, and several roads have reached the border.

The ministers of the two governments may not be clear about the military principles of the firearms age, but they are comfortable with the strategic role of railways. After confirming that the military strength surpassed the other side, the railway network was rolled out, and at the same time a favorable situation was created for the party and the Khitan.

Speaking of the changes in the past few years, Du Zhongxiao can feel that the few years after he entered Beijing must be a time to fight against the surrounding areas. There is a group of soldiers who will grow up with the war. Whether they can cooperate with the bureaucratic system and rebuild the Great Song army is the most important thing.

In recent years, external victories, internal financial improvements, and a clear atmosphere have emerged in politics, and the temperament of the whole country is different. In the first month of this year, the emperor suddenly became ill, and after fainting, he woke up and often spoke strange words, and could not see things for a long time. Now, my health has finally improved and I can handle government affairs normally. It is precisely because of this that Du Zhongxiao was allowed to return to Beijing at this time.

Destroying the party and the Khitan and realizing the unification of the world is a great temptation for an emperor. If the offensive is successful and the western frontier is pacified, it will inevitably go all out to deal with the Khitan. Du Zhongxiao didn't know what kind of situation it would be.

Since ascending to the throne, Du Zhongxiao has been an official abroad for too long, and he has had too little contact with the emperor, and the two are not familiar with each other. When I returned to Beijing this time, it didn't matter what I did, what was important was the interaction with the emperor. If the interaction is good, the future is limitless. Of course, if it's not good, it may be beaten into the cold. As for being a ruler, without the emperor's trust, what to do.

Pang Ji has been appointed abroad, and now the prime ministers of the court are Wen Yanbo and Liu Xin, Wang Yaochen, Zeng Gongliang and Zhang Fangping are participating in politics, the privy envoys are Wang Deyong and Han Qi, and the deputy envoys are Tian Guo and Cheng Kan. Du Zhongxiao returned to Beijing, Han Qilai took over as the economic envoy of Hequ Road and the Western Regions, and Du Zhongxiao went to be the privy deputy envoy, which was really difficult to do.

If you don't obey the edict, of course, there are reasons why Du Zhongxiao feels that his qualifications are shallow, and there is also this practical problem. Du Zhongxiao is in the court, and he doesn't have his own connections, so he is too reluctant to be a ruler, and his foundation is not solid.