The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 1101: Stockpiling Food and Grass
Li Yan wants to use the extremely dangerous double-edged sword of war to resolve internal conflicts that cannot be resolved through normal means. But even if Li Yan can control two countries by himself, it is still not so easy to plan a war, and all aspects must be fully prepared.

At this time, the East Factory raised the grain price in order to reasonably snatch grain from the aristocratic grain merchants. The large-scale war brewing this winter required a huge amount of grain, and high prices were just the right way to quickly accumulate a large amount of grain to cope with the crisis.

Secondly, it is also an indirect way to subsidize the people, protect them from bankruptcy, and prevent them from being swallowed up by the nobles, so that in the struggle between imperial power and the nobles, the country can have enough popular support and gain the support of a large number of ordinary people.

However, real subsidies for the people will have to wait until the problem of the aristocratic families is solved.

Otherwise, the aristocratic families that account for more than half of the country's strength will be able to suck up all the benefits that Li Yan has put in. Not only will the benefits not fall on the people, but the aristocratic families' strength will also be increased in disguise, which will backfire.

Therefore, before flooding the market with money, the issue of the aristocratic families must be resolved.

Seeing Li Xiang's tangled face, Li Yan smiled and said, "In fact, even from a business perspective, we won't suffer any loss."

"In the third year of Zhenguan, floods occurred frequently. In Chang'an, the best Yangzhou rice was sold for 300 wen per dan. Even soaked brown rice was sold for 150 wen per dan. But in the fifth and tenth years of Zhenguan, a dan of rice only cost 30 or 40 wen."

"That is to say, no matter how low the rice price is in a disaster year, it is still higher than the rice price in a good year. The difference is easily more than three times, and five or six times is also normal. If there are unscrupulous merchants who work together to hoard rice, it is not uncommon for the price to be more than ten times."

At this point, Li Yan's face became heavy. "Under this high grain price, even the common people's families are broken and their livelihood is in dire straits. But the court is too big, and the situations in different places are different. This kind of behavior cannot be stopped even if it is completely based on court laws."

"If you lower the price, the people in the areas with good harvests will suffer, and low grain prices will hurt farmers; if you raise the price, the people in the disaster-stricken areas will not be able to survive, and they will have no rice to eat. What do you think we should do?"

"Uh." Li Xiang rolled his eyes, smacked his lips, and after thinking for a long time, he still didn't know what to do.

"At this time, a slightly flexible coordination mechanism is needed."

Li Yan looked at Li Xiang with sparkling eyes and said, "And the East Factory will play this role. Not only can you transport cheap grain from fertile lands to barren lands, reducing the surplus and replenishing the shortage; you can also buy up grain at high prices in good years."

"Use the government and huge financial resources to build warehouses in various provinces, prefectures and counties to store grain."

"When there is a disaster year, or when grain prices are high and people can't afford to eat, we sell it at a low price to maintain food stability and protect the people's minimum survival guarantee."

"Even so, the price difference is enough for the East Factory to make a lot of money, but without the huge profits of those unscrupulous merchants. In this way, the lives of the people can be protected and fiscal revenue can be increased. It's a win-win situation, isn't it?"

Such subsidies can prevent the common people from being forced to sell their land and families to wealthy and powerful families.

Although the war he was about to launch would involve many innocent people, Li Yan had no choice. This was the darkness before dawn. If he survived this disaster, he could at least gain one or two hundred years of freedom and prosperity.

Li Yan believed that even if he asked the people for their opinions, they would agree.

A rich kid once said that if the world was in chaos, the people would suffer, not the rich. No matter how fierce the war was outside, or how many lives were lost, they still enjoyed themselves with singing and dancing, and drinking and feasting.

But Li Yan felt that the lives of the lower-class people were worthless and they were not afraid of death at all.

The rich say they are not afraid, but they are actually very afraid, otherwise they would not say it. When war breaks out, all beings are equal and no one can escape. The poor only lose poverty, but the rich lose much more.

Money, beauties, mansions, and a life of luxury and debauchery like a god.

At least, Li Yan was more afraid of war, unrest and change than ordinary people. Because he was the emperor, the highest level that enjoyed immediate benefits. Once a war broke out, he would lose his vast territory!

What do the people who are struggling to survive in this hell on earth have to fear? They are afraid of nothing and have nothing to lose.

In history, whenever there was a great chaos and a change of dynasty, the powerful and wealthy were purged in large numbers, resources were redistributed, and the inherent power no longer existed. Instead, a large number of lower-class people stepped onto the stage of power and changed their class.

At the very least, at the beginning of the founding of the country, ordinary people could get more land and live a few years of peace.

From the principle of the concession of the happy, we can know who is more afraid of war. On the other hand, if the ordinary people of the Tang Dynasty are not afraid of war, but look forward to it, this shows how miserable the people's lives are.

Li Xiang was delighted and nodded repeatedly: "Father, your majesty is wise. I will definitely follow your orders."

"Well, this alone can earn the court a lot of profit, and it's a sure win. This business is simple and easy to operate. Moreover, compared to other industries, the profit is not high, and it requires a huge amount of capital, and the profit cycle is long. Ordinary aristocratic merchants look down on it."

Li Yan reminded Li Xiang, "The court needs to control food and stabilize the country, which is the most important thing. The secondary thing is to make a profit. However, the East Factory is backed by the court's financial temple, which can absorb a huge amount of funds." "Although the profit is not large, it is stable and can be used as a long-term business project."

Li Xiang promised: "I will remember your father's teachings."

"Well, Guanzhong is not only the location of the capital, but also the rear base for controlling the northwest in the future. There are more than a hundred vassal states in the west. If these vassal states want to develop and thrive, they also need a large amount of materials from the Central Plains."

Li Yan said solemnly: "Among these, food is the core. Controlling food is equivalent to controlling the lifeline of the Western Region. This is also an important factor in strengthening the court's management of the Western Region."

"The development of the vassal states has just started, and they haven't realized this yet. The East Factory must make arrangements in advance, get ahead of them, control this lifeline, at least control more than 60% of the grain, and assist the court in controlling the Western Regions."

"There is also the transportation of grain from the south to the north. Every winter, the Turks have to buy a huge amount of grain from the Tang Dynasty. On the one hand, it is a huge benefit from the trade between the two countries. On the other hand, it is also to prevent the grassland people from going south to invade the Tang Dynasty because they can't survive."

"This last point is related to the survival of the Tang Dynasty and cannot be neglected."

"what"

Li Xiang was dumbfounded when he heard this. Before, he had only considered the grain needs of the Tang Dynasty itself. Now, after being reminded by his father, he realized that there were also the countries in the Western Regions and the northern barbarians. The thought of supplying two vast territories that were not inferior to the Tang Dynasty was overwhelming.

Suddenly, he panicked: "Father, if that's the case, the granaries in Guanzhong might not be enough. Besides, it's hard for Guanzhong to be self-sufficient, and it has to rely on grain from Bashu and Jiangnan."

"Now we have to increase the support for the entire Snow Region, Western Region and Turkic. I think the current scale is far from enough."

Li Yan saw that Li Xiang still had some basic common sense, and praised: "Not bad, the fact that you know these things shows that you usually put in a lot of effort."

"The several tribes of Zhenla in Indochina have been brought under the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty. The grain produced here in three seasons a year is enough to meet the needs of the Western Regions. However, the court cannot collect much grain here. You can send the East Factory to increase the purchase of grain here and transport it to the north."

"Then we increase the price and sell it to the vassal states. They are either aristocratic families or meritorious officials. They have plenty of money, so there is no need to worry about them not buying."

Li Yan said hesitantly, "Father, Zhenla is far away from Chang'an, and there are many mountains and rivers. The cost of transporting grain is only 70% to 80%. Isn't it cost-effective? I have learned that although the East Factory has business here, it does not engage in grain trade."

“Now we can do it, and we can do it on a big scale.”

Li Yan thought for a while and said, "This place is only 4,000 miles away from the Tang Dynasty, but the south is mountainous, and the food is cheap and bulky, so it is indeed difficult to transport. However, you can re-plan and transport the food from Zhenla to Annan."

"This section of the journey is relatively short and not difficult. We can even purchase directly from Annan. Those grain merchants and local vendors can continuously transport grain here."

"The main problem is that the court and the East Factory can come and transport the grain from Annan to Bashu, and then transport the grain from Bashu to Guanzhong. In this way, the price of grain can be controlled and profits can be increased layer by layer. The court can then transfer more grain from Bashu to Chang'an."

Li Xiang's eyes lit up. Yes, how could he not have thought of it.

If this is the case, then things will be much simpler. The court will not need to send out a large number of laborers and a large caravan. The thousands of miles of journey can be broken down into sections. Each section can be transported by a local caravan, and the cost can be minimized.

He is indeed worthy of being called Father Emperor!

Although it was a very difficult problem for him, he thought of a proper solution in a flash. Li Xiang looked at Li Yan with admiration, his heart full of respect.

"Father, you are wise. I will follow your instructions and come up with a plan as soon as possible."

Li Yan finally reminded him, "This year is the first year of my accession to the throne. Your father's prestige is incomparable to that of the emperor. It would be bad if the Turks thought that the Tang Dynasty was weak and launched an invasion to the south. It is always a good idea to prepare more food."

"Don't be reluctant to spend money, and don't make it public. Take advantage of the autumn harvest and buy up all the grain you can."

"We built granaries in various places to serve as transit points, and then transported the granaries to Guanzhong."

"We only collect and store the grain, but don't sell it. If there is any change, the court can still rely on it. This is a big deal. You must take charge of it yourself and report to me at any time on the grain storage situation in Guanzhong and the surrounding prefectures and roads. Do you understand?"

At the end, Li Yan's tone was very stern, and Li Xiang's mood became tense. He quickly stood up and said, "Father, rest assured. You have entrusted such a big matter to me. I will take personal responsibility and ensure that everything goes well."

(End of this chapter)