Chapter 336

"There are ten roads in the Tang Dynasty, paved with brick roads, which are like connected paths." everyone couldn't help taking a breath. I have to say that the scene depicted by Merton is too tempting.

"Merton, do you know what you're talking about?" Qin Qiong was surprised and shouted. She quickly turned to Li Shimin and begged: "emperor, Merton is young and ignorant and has no words to hide. Please forgive her majesty."

Li Shimin smiled coldly and said, "I'd like to hear these words."

Merton looked unconvinced and said proudly: "Before that, building brick roads was indeed a waste of people and money, but now, horseshoes have spread all over the Tang Dynasty. They are no longer afraid of horseshoe wear. The super heavy load of four-wheel carriages and ordinary rammed earth official roads can no longer carry them. Fortunately, in sunny days, it must be difficult to move in case of cloudy and rainy weather. It can make the time for building brick roads ripe."

Li Shimin sneered: "can I understand that the rammed earth official road has limited the sales of four-wheel carriages in Mojia village? Your greatest selfishness is to sell the four-wheel carriages in Mojia village."

The civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty also looked at Merton with a close look. It can be imagined that once the ten roads of the Tang Dynasty are built, the sales of four-wheel carriages in Mojia village will increase tenfold and become the biggest beneficiary.

Merton nodded without hesitation and said, "Mojia village will indeed benefit from the four-wheel carriage. However, Wei Chen believes that compared with the benefits obtained by the imperial court, this benefit of Mojia village is a drop in the bucket."

Li Shimin moved in his heart and said, "then tell me about the benefits of the imperial court."

"First, once the brick road is completed, it will not be easy to damage. Once and for all, the people's corvee will be reduced. Isn't it a policy of light corvee and light tax with the imperial court?" Merton said.

Fang Xuanling couldn't help nodding. The annual corvee and road construction are the big head. If the brick road is paved and completed at one time, there will be no worry within ten years, and the people's corvee will naturally be greatly reduced.

"Second, brick roads are built, materials flow between roads, business travel is continuous, and the tax revenue of the imperial court must rise sharply."

Wei Zheng snorted coldly, "the Tang Dynasty is based on agriculture. How much commercial tax is there?"

Merton didn't think so, but he didn't refute: "the business tax is a small matter, and the real role is the circulation of materials in the Tang Dynasty. I heard that Guanzhong has always been short of grain and usually needs to export grain from outside Guanzhong. Once the brick road is built, the cost of grain transportation will be greatly reduced. The minister promised that the grain price in Guanzhong and the land of fish and rice such as Su Wu are not much expensive."

Merton's move suddenly mentioned the hearts of the officials. There was a serious shortage of food in Guanzhong. The cost of transporting food outside Guanzhong every year was astronomical. From Emperor Wen of Sui Dynasty, once there was a shortage of food in Guanzhong, the emperor would bring the palace to Luoyang for food. Later, the Tang Dynasty moved its capital to Luoyang. There was no reason. Other places did not say that Guanzhong must urgently need such a brick road 。

Merton continued: "Wei Chen thinks that there are three reasons why the Tang Dynasty needs to build brick roads. The Tang Dynasty has a vast territory. Take Lingnan road as an example. The road is far away, and the documents between the imperial court and the imperial court can only be reached in more than a month. If there is a brick road from Chang'an to Lingnan, it can be reached in ten days at most. It will be five days at once. The control ability of the imperial court must be doubled.

The place where the brick road is paved is the eternal land of the Tang Dynasty. "Merton threw the ground and said aloud. He threw out the biggest mace.

Li Shimin couldn't help breathing. In the face of the emperor, everything was empty. Only his own rivers and mountains were the most important. It can be imagined that once the brick road was built and the border was unstable, the imperial court could certainly get the news in the shortest time and mobilize troops and horses to fight the rebellion at the fastest speed.

Similarly, once the foreign enemy invades, the imperial court can also form an effective counterattack in the shortest time, and the odds of victory increase greatly.

Li Shimin suddenly breathed rapidly and was obviously extremely excited. It can be imagined that once the brick road of the Tang Dynasty runs rampant, the imperial court's control over all places will certainly be like an arm and finger, and the rivers and mountains of the Tang Dynasty will certainly be stable.

Seeing this, Wei Zheng suddenly stood up and shouted, "Your Majesty, think twice. Have you forgotten the lessons of the Grand Canal?"

"Grand Canal!" Li Shimin's eyes suddenly recovered a trace of clarity.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty recruited millions of people to build the Grand Canal, and finally directly shook the rivers and mountains of the Sui Dynasty.

Wei Zheng pointed to Merton and shouted angrily, "the violent Sui Dynasty is because of the abuse of people's power, so that II died. Merton, you have ulterior motives and confuse the emperor to take the road of emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty again."

The civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty immediately looked at Merton with bad eyes. The brick roads built in the Tang Dynasty are not much smaller than opening the Grand Canal.

Qin Qiong and others also looked at Merton with worried eyes.

Merton laughed and bowed his hands to the ministers: "when Wei minister was building the road, he also lamented the Grand Canal. He wrote a poem. Please appreciate it."

If Qin Huaiyu and the three were here, they would lament, and the Mohists began to write poems again.

At the moment, the Minister of civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty showed an expectant expression. Merton said nothing else. Only the poems spread are unique among thousands. Most of the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty are poets. Naturally, they also want to see the good poems of the Mohists.

"Ten thousand long Ge green silk ships will never be returned to Yangzhou.

It should be Tianjiao kaibianshui, with no mountains for more than a thousand miles.

The Sui Dynasty perished in this river, and now Lai Tongbo is thousands of miles away.

If there is no dragon boat in the water hall, there will be few achievements in Gongyu's theory. "

When Merton finished reading a poem, the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty immediately sighed. The Mohist school is indeed brilliant. It is a river for the death of the Sui Dynasty. Up to now, Lai Tongbo is thousands of miles away. This sentence can certainly become a famous sentence for thousands of years. Merton's poem points out the reasons for the death of the Sui Dynasty and corrects the name of the Grand Canal.

"Since the opening of the Grand Canal, dozens of cities on both sides have benefited from it. Every day, countless rice from the south is transported to the north by boat, and how many people can live. Although emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was tyrannical, Mo can assert that the achievements of the Grand Canal will certainly benefit China even after a thousand years." Merton said flatly.

"Weichen can say impolitely that a brick road is enough to cover half of the canal." Merton said impolitely. With the bearing capacity of the brick road and the characteristics of rain and wind, its transportation volume is no less than that of the Grand Canal

The role of the grand canal can be said. Needless to say by Merton, court officials also know that a grand canal creates countless profits for the Tang Dynasty every year, and makes the Tang Dynasty have several brick roads comparable to the Grand Canal out of thin air. The benefits can be described as great to heaven.

Merton continued: "moreover, the Grand Canal of the Sui Yang emperor caused the people to leave their homes, and even continued to serve corvee for more than a few years, but the brick road is not. Not to mention that its construction difficulty is much smaller than the Grand Canal. The people do not need to leave their homes, but only need to recruit the people along the official road."

When Merton finished, all officials nodded in their hearts. Compared with the Grand Canal, building brick roads is indeed less risky and has a lot of benefits.

In fact, it's not just Li Shimin. Many officials have been persuaded, and the military can't wait.

Wei Zheng snorted coldly, "it took 23000 yuan for the fifty mile official road in Mojia village! The ten roads in the Tang Dynasty are connected for more than ten thousand miles, that is, nearly 4.6 million yuan. How can the imperial court take out so much money."

"4.6 million!"

As soon as Wei Zheng said this, everyone suddenly took a breath.

At the moment, the Tang Dynasty has just been established and accepted the mess of the former Sui Dynasty. There is nothing to be done. How can there be so much money. Li Shimin and others suddenly looked bleak. The brick road seemed good and the risk was low, but buying bricks alone was enough to deter people.

Merton went up with a shy look and said, "ink has another skill..."