PFC Chapter 448 Annual Meeting
Chapter 448 Annual Meeting
The twelfth month of winter is the coldest time of the year. The raging cold wind seems to be holding a sharp sword that can pierce through thick clothes, not to mention exposed skin. The face feels like it is being scraped by it, which is stinging and painful.
"It's snowing. How about I call a sedan chair?"
Walking out of the office in the front yard, Zhang Chunhua looked up at the falling snowflakes and asked Zhang Mo for instructions.
"No need. I sit all day. Walking around is exercise!"
She wrapped her fur coat tightly around her and walked towards the inner courtyard, saying, "It was still more comfortable in the Jinyang Tulou. The downstairs was the office area, and the upstairs was the bedroom. It was so convenient! This old Yuan Shao mansion covers such a large area. It looks very solemn and magnificent, but it is far less practical than the Tulou."
Zhang Chunhua was afraid she would slip, so she held her arm and said, "I went outside to check yesterday. The earthen buildings will be completed soon. In addition to the three buildings at the Tang Palace, the medical laboratory on the west side near the foot of the mountain is also almost finished."
"Well, after it's built, I'll move to the Tulou and renovate this place to make it a branch of Hongguang Academy in Jizhou."
Walking out of the front yard and through a moon gate into the garden corridor, Zhang Mo saw from afar a little man holding a lantern running towards her happily at the end of the corridor. She walked over quickly. Lu Qian put the lantern into the servant's hand, took out a hot hand warmer from his arms and put it in her hand, "Mother, warm yourself up!"
"Mom has some here!" Zhang Mo smiled gently, put the hand warmer back into her son's hand, and stroked his little head. "It's so late, why aren't you sleeping yet?"
Lu Qian said, "Daddy is not here, and I'm afraid Mom will be scared if she comes back too late. I'm grown up now and can protect Mom. I won't let the assassin hurt you again!"
Zhang Mo's heart was instantly filled with warmth. She bent down and hugged her son, then took his hand and walked back. "There won't be any assassins in the palace. It's too cold. You don't have to come to pick me up in the future. Don't catch a cold."
Lu Qian patted his chest and said, "I'm very strong now. I won't get sick anymore!"
Zhang Mo looked down at his profile which resembled Lu Bu, and the longing in her heart was like a river bursting its banks, unable to be controlled.
Lu Qian asked, "When will Daddy be back? Chinese New Year is coming soon. Last year Mom wasn't here, and this year Daddy's not here either. When can our family of five stay up together to celebrate the New Year?"
"This...maybe there's still no way this year. There are still two enemies in Liangzhou that haven't been eliminated."
"Oh..." Lu Qian replied disappointedly, then asked, "Then mother, can you take the memorial to the backyard for me to review? This mansion is so big, and the weather is cold now. Mother doesn't want to ride in a sedan chair and walk such a long distance every day."
"Your father is not here, and mother is a woman after all. There are some things that need to be discussed with the subordinates. It is not appropriate to call them to the inner courtyard." Zhang Mo explained.
"Then after I finish my homework during the day, can I go to the front yard to accompany my mother in the evening?" Lu Qian looked up at her.
Zhang Mo smiled and said, "When you grow up, you'll have plenty to worry about. Now, just do your homework well, practice your martial arts well, and use your spare time to help mother take care of your younger brothers and sisters."
The mother and son chatted all the way back to the inner courtyard. Lu Qian went back to his room to sleep, and Zhang Mo also went into her room. The heater had been lit long ago and the temperature was not low at all, but she still felt chilly. Ever since Lu Bu led his troops to Liangzhou, she had been thinking about him every day, and today was even worse.
She simply washed up and got into the cool bed. She tossed and turned until midnight before falling asleep, but she dreamed that Lu Bu really took a concubine and even brought the woman back with him when he returned to Yecheng, saying that he wanted to make her a concubine.
At three quarters past five in the morning the next day, Zhang Mo was woken up by her maid in her sleep. She once again lamented that being an emperor in ancient times was not a good job. She had endless memorials to read every day, worked harder than cows, slept later than dogs, and got up earlier than chickens. The only thing that was barely acceptable was that she ate better than pigs.
With a sleep-deprived face, she let the maidservant dress her up, then she quickly ate breakfast and went to the conference hall for the annual meeting. It was already one o'clock in the morning, and all the civil and military officials who were qualified and had time had arrived.
Specifically, there were Jizhou Governor Ju Su, Bingzhou Governor and Logistics Minister Chang Lin, Tang State Chief Secretary Xu You and a group of staff officials, Xu Shu, Shen Pei, Fa Zheng, Xun Chen and others, Minister of Civil Affairs Chen Gong, Minister of Finance Xu Ding, Minister of Political Science and Law Sima Zhi, Minister of Agriculture Shi Tao, Zhang Hai, representative of Minister of Industry and Commerce Wang Ding, Minister of Personnel Cui Yan, Minister of Education Cai Yong and his daughter Cai Zhaoji, Minister of Health Zhang Ji, in addition there were Jizhou Military Region Commander Qu Yi, Sizhou Military Region Commander Gao Shun, Flying Eagle Squadron Commander Du Fei and his wife Amina, as well as representatives sent by other governors and commanders to report on their work and clerks responsible for recording meetings, etc. The whole hall was filled with people.
This can be said to be the first annual meeting held after the establishment of the Tang Dynasty. It has two purposes: one is to summarize the work, and the other is to formulate the strategic direction for the next few years.
Although King Lu Bu of Tang is not here, everyone in the Tang Kingdom knows that the economy was developed by the princess and the policies were formulated by her. Even if the King of Tang is here, the princess still has to preside over this work.
The King of Tang could conquer the world on horseback, but he could not rule the world when he dismounted.
Zhang Mo and her personal secretary, Zhang Chunhua, walked from the back hall into the front hall. Everyone stood up quickly and bowed in greeting, "Your Highness, the Princess!"
"No need to be so polite, everyone. Please take your seats!"
She raised her hand, walked to the top seat and knelt down, and the ministers also took their seats.
As the host of this meeting, Xu You first delivered an opening speech, and then representatives from various departments reported on their work.
This was a very long and boring process. The civil officials were fine and could listen patiently, but the military generals were mostly drowsy. After each department had finished reporting, Xu You made a summary, and then Zhang Mo and his staff evaluated the work of each department, affirming the good work, pointing out the shortcomings and discussing ways to improve.
After summarizing, there were no major problems except that the country's fiscal deficit was still serious, and the government owed the people a lot of money and grain that had not been repaid. Among them, the Princess of Tang was the biggest creditor of the Tang Dynasty. After raiding the Jizhou nobles and powerful people this year, although the money was compensated a little, it also cost a lot of money to use troops in Liangzhou and Qingzhou. In addition, Zhang Mo also had to organize and train a navy, and building ships was a huge expense.
In fact, according to the current level of development of industry and agriculture in the Tang Dynasty and the number of registered households in various places, the national treasury can be immediately filled up after three or four years of recuperation.
"After we conquer Qingzhou and Liangzhou, we will stop fighting and let the people recuperate. But the money for the navy must be spent and cannot be saved. We must first pay it out of the profits of the factories." Zhang Mo said.
The largest shareholder of all the factories in Tang State is Zhang Mo herself. Doing this means continuing to spend the princess's money to support the army. However, Zhang Mo does not care, because she is now the ruler of this country and is the person standing at the top of the pyramid. The money spent will eventually serve her.
After discussing the paperwork, the commanders of each military region and their representatives will speak, reporting on the current number of troops, the number of people who need to retire, and some problems in military settlements.
The Tang Dynasty now has 70,000 regular troops and 160,000 reserve troops, not counting the newly reorganized army in Liangzhou. If all of them are integrated, there will be 300,000 pure combat troops, of which 70,000 regular troops are almost all elite soldiers. Of course, if auxiliary troops are included, the number will be even greater, and there will be at least 500,000 troops.
With this military strength, if there were enough food and a complete navy, they could go south to fight Cao Mengde, or even push all the way to Shuzhong.
However, the Tang State is now not only facing a serious financial deficit, but also has just begun to form a navy, so future strategic plans can only be cultivated!